The civil war in Syria—now in its sixth year—has created the worst humanitarian crisis of our time and in tandem with other brutal conflicts has sparked the largest global displacement of people in recorded history.

The world was awakened to the enormity of the crisis in the summer of 2015, when thousands of desperate refugees, most from Syria but also from other war-torn countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq, began making dangerous sea crossings in flimsy, overcrowded boats in hopes of reaching safety on the shores of Europe. Thousands, tragically, did not survive the journey.

The International Rescue Committee was one of the first organisations to deploy a team of experts to the Greek island of Lesbos, both to assess the most urgent needs and to launch a comprehensive response. With the number of vulnerable people quickly multiplying, the context on the ground changing daily, and resources stretched to the limit, the IRC called on our supporters for assistance.

In September 2015, we issued a special £25 million emergency appeal to address the growing needs. To date, we have raised £32 million to support our efforts. See how we're providing relief to millions of uprooted people.

To meet the urgent and evolving needs of the people caught in this growing crisis, additional funding is now required to ensure the IRC’s ability to provide the most effective, targeted and timely humanitarian aid—inside Syria, in neighbouring host countries, in Europe and in the U.S. Funding in the amount of $14 million is being sought to reach a total of $57 million by December 2016.

This document provides an update on our progress and achievements, which were made possible by generous support from our donors. We also include key information about urgent and evolving needs that will require additional funds to address. We hope you will stand with us as we pursue this critical mission.

Refugee crisis response

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