In the press meeting, Samir Hafiz, Damascus Turkmen Community International Relations Manager, said that they first came to Turkey when the conflict started in Syria. “IHH was the first place we applied in order to provide help for our brothers in Syria" he said.
Hafiz who explained that they set up an aid store with IHH in Yayladağı, in order to send help to the rural areas of Syria, he said "We collected 80% of the aid from IHH. It was IHH which reached out to 10 million people out of 23 in Syria.”
Noting that they need arms in order to protect their families, Hafiz concluded his speech by saying:
"But for that purpose, other sources are sought after not IHH. We never discussed with IHH any help but food, clothes and shelter.”
The next speaker, Ahmed Ghanam, the PR manager of Syrian Solidarity and Development Foundation said that when they started to work to help out Syrian people IHH was by their side. Spokesperson of the foundation which has joint projects with IHH said that a smear campaign against IHH was launched and that “we cannot help but ask if Assad regime is behind it”. Ghanam also noted that IHH only provided aid for food, clothes and shelter and thanked to Turkish people and IHH.
Ayman Shabani from Damascus Development Foundation said that they are helping Syrians along with IHH over the past twi years. "The first and foremost is assistance for food, clothes and shelter. IHH provides help to people without ever discriminating between them” he added. Shabani explained that thousands of people were rescued from jail in Syria thanks to IHH which puts so much effort to stop the guns. "Over the past two years, they have done so many important things in places like Damascus which is under the siege. People perish out of hunger there. We would like to thank IHH and Turkish people.”
Mehdi Davud, head of Association of Nour reminding that a human tragedy is taking place in Syria for three years said: "Syrian people are left for dead. The target is not IHH here but to break down the resistance. As the Association of Nour, we have realized serious projects with IHH. Free medicine is distributed in 14 pharmacies we have set up. While big organizations like UN leave Syrian people alone IHH has always been by the side of Syrian people in the most hearty genuine way. As Syrian people, we are with IHH."
In the meeting, general secretary of Association of Damascene Scholars, Prof Dr Muhammad Abu-l Khair Shukri said "Our association is established in Istanbul 3 months ago and we deliver humanitarian aid to the places under siege in Syria. We deliver aid to 4 thousand families monthly in northern Syria. We are doing this in cooperation with IHH. We as the Association of Damascene Scholars have carried out many projects with IHH. The difficulty in Syria is out there. So not only IHH but everybody should work for it. We would like to thank Turkish people Turkish government and IHH. What Turkey did for Syria during these hard times is like what Ansar did to Muhajirun."
As the spokesperson of Association of Syrian Turks, Ahmet Şirin said "Since the beginning of Syrian revolution we are grateful to IHH for helping us to organize and establish our NGOs. We as Syrian people were never an organized community. We would like to extend our thanks for making us come together and establish solidarity with our people. We consider the smear campaigns against the NGOs and charity organizations which has opened its doors and guided us, by lumping them in with illegal organizations, as a sign of oppression toward Syrian people. As Syrian Turks we would like to thank IHH with all our hearts.”
Mughira Sharif, a board member of Foundation of Human, said that whenever he goes to Syria he comes across IHH’s humanitarian work and no other organization delivers aid as much as IHH does. "While a person dies every 12 minutes, and a woman dies every 45 minutes, and a child dies every 50 minutes, and a person freezes to death in every 8.5 hours andone person starves to death every 10 hours, those who try to stop the aids of IHH standing by the side of those oppressed people are accomplices to those oppressors. We are condemning the operation toward IHH Kilis branch office.”
Beshar Seyid Hasan, a member of Sham Shareef Charity noted that the Syrian crisis is getting bigger and one foundation is not able to cover that. "We worked with IHH in order to provide for the war refugees. As Sham Sherif Charity we would like to thank IHH” he said.
