UPDATE: UNRWA Yarmouk social media campaign reaches millions worldwide

(CHICAGO 01/22/2014) – The American Muslims for Palestine, a national education and advocacy organization, thanks its supporters and all who participated in the three-day worldwide social media campaign, demanding an end to the siege on Yarmouk refugee camp near Damascus.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which was established to deal with the Palestinian refugee crisis caused by the partition of Palestine in 1947 and the subsequent Zionist war in 1948, called for the campaign, which was backed by celebrities such as Mia Farrow, Hugh Grant and Arab Idol winner Mohamad Assaf, as well as other UN agencies such as Unicef, UNHCR, UNWFP, OCHA and UNRWA. Several international NGOs such as Human Rights Watch as well as domestic grassroots organizations such as AMP supported the effort.

The three-day worldwide social media campaigned generated nearly 32 million impressions and nearly 12 million people participated in the Twitter campaign that applied pressure on those at the Geneva Two Syria Talks. At issue is the Syrian regime’s siege on Yarmouk refugee camp near Damascus and the inability to deliver humanitarian aid there and to other civilian areas within Syria.

“Millions of people heard our plea, that we’ve seen enough reports of starving children, infants with rickets and women dying in childbirth for lack of medical care. We urge the Geneva Conference, which starts today to listen to our voice,” said UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness. “A small amount of food aid has been allowed into Yarmouk, but this is a drop in the ocean. We demand that Yarmouk and other civilian areas are open to safe and regular humanitarian access; that the civilian residents of Yarmouk like all civilians be granted free and safe movement; and that all sides to the Syria conflict comply with their international obligations to protect Syrian and Palestinian civilians in Yarmouk and across Syria.”

“AMP is extremely grateful to all those who responded not only to our call to participate in this campaign but to everyone globally who lent their voices in attempts to end this grave humanitarian crisis,” said Kristin Szremski, AMP national director of media and communications. “We don’t know the outcome yet as Geneva Two just convened today. But you can be sure that the millions of voices raised for justice will be heard. We must keep up the pressure until the siege on Yarmouk is totally lifted.”

The Syrian regime has had Yarmouk under siege since July 2013. In the past three months, more than 40 people have starved to death and dozens of children are suffering from diseases related to severe malnourishment, according to UNRWA.

Last week, the UN’s top human rights official Navi Pillay condemned the repeated obstruction of convoys trying to bring supplies to a “besieged population” of some 18,000 people in Yarmouk saying that, “impeding humanitarian assistance to civilians in desperate need may amount to a war crime.” She said government forces and affiliated militias appear to be imposing collective punishment on the civilians in Yarmouk and she stressed that starvation of civilians as a method of combat is prohibited under international law and may amount to a war crime.

Though the official campaign has come to an end, it is still possible to exert pressure this week on the participants in the Geneva Two talks on Twitter. Use hashtag #Geneva2.

Possible Tweets include:
End the siege on Yarmouk and other civilian areas in Syria #Geneve2 #Yarmouk

Collective punishment is illegal and is a war crime #Geneva2 #Yarmouk

Palestinian refugees are not pawns of war. End the siege of Yarmouk #Geneva2 #Yarmouk