image by Esteban Rivera, 24 July 2018
Last modified: 2020-09-25 by ian macdonald
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image by Esteban Rivera, 24 July 2018
The "الدفاع المدني السوري" (English: Syrian Civil Defense), also known as
"الخوذ البيضاء" (English: White helmets) or "القبعات البيضاء" (English: White
hats) is a volunteer organisation that operates in parts of rebel-controlled
Syria and in Turkey. Formed in 2014 during the Syrian Civil War, the majority of
their activity in Syria consists of urban search and rescue in response to
bombing, medical evacuation, evacuation of civilians from danger areas, and
essential service delivery. They are widely known as White helmets because of
their gear, but also to differentiate from the
official "الدفاع المدني
السوري" (English: Syrian Civil Defence Forces), also known as Self-Protection
Squads, which is the official civil defence organisation that operates in Syria,
established in 1953, which is also known as The People's Army.
The rescue
teams that later became Syria Civil Defence emerged during the late 2012
escalation of the Syrian Civil War, as areas no longer under government control
came under sustained attack by government forces. In response, in the absence of
formal governmental structures, small groups of civilian volunteers from
affected communities, particularly in Aleppo and Idlib, assembled to assist
civilians injured in bombardment or trapped under the rubble of destroyed
buildings. Training, funding and support was provided from international
partners, including donations from governments in Western Europe, the US and
Japan; the Turkish AKUT Search and Rescue Association; and a variety of NGOs,
private individuals, public fundraising campaigns, and charities. Primary
support and training was provided by Mayday Rescue Foundation, a not-for-profit
foundation established by a former British Army officer, and became a key factor
in the development of the organisation.
Local and provincial councils
joined with Mayday Rescue Foundation and AKUT Search and Rescue Association to
create the first training programmes in early 2013. ARK (formally: Ark Group
DMCC, official website:
http://www.arkgroupdmcc.com), an international contracting firm based in the
United Arab Emirates, would facilitate entry of volunteers to Turkey, where they
would be trained by AKUT. Early training courses included trauma care, command
and control and crisis management. Over the next two years, the number of
independent civil defence teams grew to several dozen as graduates who
established new centers; the national organisation of SCD was founded on October
25, 2014at a conference of independent teams."
Sources:
http://syriacivildefense.org/our-history,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Helmets_(Syrian_Civil_War) and
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forces_de_la_d%C3%A9fense_civile_syrienne
The flag is a white horizontal background with the logo (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Syrian_Civil_Defense_logo.png/1200px-Syrian_Civil_Defense_logo.png),
as seen here:
http://syriacivildefense.org/sites/default/files/styles/article_node_view_360_width_/public/main/articles/18076492_797209443768146_4906823159851195885_o.jpg?itok=_mVPPzH4
(source:
http://syriacivildefense.org/ar/event
For additional information go
to Syria Civil Defense (official website):
http://syriacivildefense.org/
Esteban Rivera, 24 July 2018
