This time last year some 5,000 people a day were risking their lives crossing the hazardous stretch of sea between Turkey and the Greek island of Lesbos.
In response to those tragic stories and images emerging from Europe’s southern border Refugee Rescue was established. The principal aim of Refugee Rescue was and still is, to provide a rescue boat with highly skilled search and rescue personnel to help save the lives of war-weary and traumatised refugees.
Twelve months later, and whilst numbers making the crossing between Turkey and Lesbos are significantly lower, each week 200-300 people are still attempting the journey in overcrowded rubber dinghies at the mercy of people smugglers. While all of the large NGOs have since left the area, Refugee Rescue has maintained their rescue operation throughout this period. They are now administering medical aid due to many of the refugees being landed on rocks.
Following the EU-Turkish agreement, where Turkey was promised €3 billion to retain refugees in camps, the threat of a return to the chaos which ensued last year is real and present. Just last week Turkish Recep Tayip President Erdogan issued a threat to open the flood gates to Europe, “if Europe tried to block Turkish EU membership talks”, he said.
Refugee Rescue was founded by Joby Fox and Jude Bennett. Joby Fox is an Irish singer songwriter from Belfast, and Jude Bennett is an artist and curator originally from Belfast but living in Copenhagen.
Joby Fox said, “We still need support to maintain our daily patrol which every week is saving many lives. I’m back in Ireland running things from home, and Jude is there on the ground coordinating the highly skilled volunteers who are coming from all over the world, including Ireland and UK. We need people to take their own initiative and to raise funds for us to help keep this vital service going. We are holding the line day-in-day-out and will continue to do so for as long as we are needed”.
Refugee Rescue is a UK registered charity, NI105156.
http://www.refugeerescue.co.uk
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