Who we are The mission of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) is to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and di- saster to survive, recover and gain control of their future. Our vision is that the IRC will lead the humanitarian field by implementing high-im- pact, cost-effective programs for people affected by crisis, and we will shape global policy and practice by sharing our learning and experience with others. All IRC programs are designed to achieve meaningful change in people’s health, safety, education, economic wellbeing and ability to influence the decisions that affect their lives. As part of these efforts, we work to implement proven interventions that facilitate the greatest potential for healthy women and children.

EU leaders must live up to their commitments to European values in responding to migration, more than 160 NGOs said today in a joint statement. The organisations are calling for strong leadership to uphold the rights and values that have been the founding principles of the European Union for 60 years. The statement comes ahead of this week’s EU summit, following months of policies aimed at shutting migration routes across the Mediterranean at any cost. Just last month EU leaders in Malta backed an Italian migration deal with Libya that exposes people to suffering and death. The 162 organizations and networks from more than 20 states – including Oxfam, Save the Children, Care, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) – call for leadership that both defends human rights and addresses people’s fears, rather than fuelling them. It also calls for EU leaders to go beyond rhetoric and deliver on their commitments to defend the human rights of men, women and children on the move. “Strength doesn't mean turning away those most in need. Strength is about showing a way forward that upholds values,” the letter reads.

In 1984, Raesa,* just 14 years old, left her family in Jordan and moved to Syria with her husband to start a new life. When civil war broke out 28 years later, Raesa was forced to flee with her children, triplets, and seek refuge back in her own country.“We left Syria through the village of Tell Shihab and went to Ramtha [in Jordan]”, Raesa says, who is now the sole breadwinner for her family. Her husband decided to stay behind with his second wife and their family.

The International Rescue Committee is responding to a deadly outbreak of cholera in the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, situated in northern Kenya near the Somalian border. Since November, more than 347 people including children have been infected with the highly contagious disease. With the onset of the rainy season, the IRC is concerned the epidemic could continue to spread, making already poor living conditions even worse.

Thousands of people are fleeing their homes as the Iraqi army, Kurdish Peshmerga and coalition forces fight to retake Mosul — Iraq's second largest city — from the ISIS militant group. Nearly 22,000 Iraqis have been displaced since the battle for Mosul began on October 17. Almost half of them are children. People who fled surrounding communities are telling International Rescue Committee aid workers about the two years of terror they endured living under ISIS. Here, one woman describes how her family managed to survive under ISIS’s strict code of behavior and dress, and how they were finally able to escape as the military offensive began.

As the military situation changed in Syria, and against a backdrop of increased anti-refugee rhetoric and policies across the world, governments began in 2017 to openly contemplate the return of refugees to the country. In this report, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Save the Children, Action Against Hunger, CARE International, the International Rescue Committee and the Danish Refugee Council warn that the situation in Syria is far from safe, however, and that the prevailing interest in securing the return of refugees is undermining their safety and dignity in neighbouring countries, creating push factors and increasing the likelihood of forced returns in 2018. It also threatens to limit the options for making a life beyond the region through resettlement or other safe and legal routes.