As the number of people seeking refuge from atrocity soars to unprecedented levels globally, Devon’s residents are rallying to give support.
Recent months have seen a surge in local initiatives to assist asylum seekers and refugees at home and abroad. This is in sharp contrast to the slow and minimal government response to the crisis.
The situation has led longstanding charity Refugee Support Devon (RSD) and the newly formed Exeter City of Sanctuary (ExCoS) group to publish a brief encouraging Devonians to continue their efforts in 2016 and beyond. It also calls upon local...
A powerful and heart-warming film about a group of Syrian refugee women is being shown at the University of Exeter.
A free screening of Yasmin Fedda’s award-winning documentary ‘Queens of Syria’, is being hosted by the University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies and Department of Theology on Thursday 12 November, and is open for everyone to attend.
The film follows a 2013 theatre project run with Syrian women who are living in exile as they prepare to perform the ancient Greek tragedy, ‘The Trojan Woman’; a play that although separated by two thousand years...
On Saturday October 31st, while some people in Exeter put on witches’ outfits and carry pumpkins, others will be empathising with the very real horror experienced by young people in Syria.
For one day only, the Art Gallery at 89 South Street will be exhibiting prints of drawings by young Syrian refugees.
The exhibition, entitled ‘From Syria with Love’ has been organised by Baraa Ehsaan Kouja, a Syrian student at the University of Exeter. There will bearound 25 prints of drawings and paintings made by Syrian refugee children aged 12-18 currently living in Al-Abrar refugee...
East Devon District Council says it is keen to play its part in the national programme to relocate refugees says East Devon A spokesman told the Daily: "The process of assisting refugees is led by Governmental policy, and, in the case of Devon, normally co-ordinated locally by the County Council. Devon County Council is the relevant social services authority and it is anticipated that they will play a key part in any local offer of support. "It would appear that government are looking to build on the existing Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme to target assistance to 20,000...
After the shocking pictures of children dying in the Mediterranean, people across Devon are rushing to donate money and goods to refugees caught in the camps at Calais.
On Thursday 10th September hundreds of people will be bringing their donations to Exeter Friends Meeting House.
The collection event has been organised on facebook in a very short time.
Over 200 people signed up to attend within the first 48 hours after the initial announcement.
“People are being astonishingly generous” said Ghee Bowman, one of the organisers “our crowdfunder page has raised...
Sundance-winning documentary RETURN TO HOMS will be screening at the Exeter Picturehouse on WEDNESDAY 9 JULY at 6:30pm, followed by Q&A with director, Talal Derki.
The film follows nineteen-year-old goalkeeper-turned-insurgent, Abdul Basset, as he and a ragtag group of comrades fight to protect the captive inhabitants of the besieged city of Homs. As one of the unlikely leaders of the Syrian rebellion Basset has become something of a totemic figure, with Le Monde labelling him an 'icon of the revolution'. His protest songs and dark sense of humour reflect his dream of...
A comment in a donor file has begun an intriguing search involving international commerce during England’s Civil War, silk togs, and a fake letter that may have finished a career... Shelley Tobin, RAMM’s Curator for Costume, reports:
Family treasures
A silk robe and quilted velvet tarboush (hat) were presented to RAMM in 1965 by Miss Mollie Prideaux, who referred to herself as the only surviving member of her family who knew their origin. They had belonged to an ancestor, Edward Barnard, not to be confused with the famous seventeenth-century philosopher and astronomer....
Exeter MP Ben Bradshaw has accused David Cameron, of an act of "terrible miscalculation" in his attempt to persuade MPs to support military action against Syria.
Mr Bradshaw said the action led to the Commons voting against Britain taking military action – by accident.
He said in his blog today: "It may be an outcome supported by a majority of the public, but it was not what any of the main parties or their leaders wanted."
Mr Bradshaw added: "If Cameron had supported Labour’s sensible and measured amendment or waited until next week, the vote would have...
A large explosion, thought to be a bomb attack, has occurred this morning in Mezzah, Damascus, local and state media reported.
Syrian State TV claimed there were casualties, however numbers have not been confirmed. According to local media, the target of the bombing this morning was the Syrian Prime Minister Wael Nader Al-Halqi who survived the assassination attempt.
Eyewitnesses say the explosion targeted the Prime Minister's convoy when a bomb exploded on a bus. (NewsPoint)
