[CARD NEWS] Syria’s Heroes in White Helmets
Khaled Farah is a Syrian volunteer rescue worker who saves people every day.
There’s one rescue he’ll never forget. It happened two years ago.
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“One day, the Ansari neighborhood was targeted by barrel bombs, and a baby was trapped beneath a collapsed building. After long hours of digging, we heard him crying.”
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“At this point, we had to be very careful. If any of the rubble fell down, not only the baby but everyone else would have probably died.” (Footage from the rescue)
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“Can you imagine how this two-week old baby survived after a three-story building collapsed above his head? The life of this baby was stronger than everything.”
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After struggling in the rubble and dust for twelve hours, his companion Khaled Omar saved the baby. The people at the scene yelled out a cheer of joy.
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The Syrian Civil Defense, where Khaled works, is the only hope in the midst of turmoil.
Syrians call them the “White Helmets” after the protective gear they wear.
“To save one life is to save all of humanity.” - The White Helmets’ motto
Founded in 2013 by a group of neighbors of Aleppo, the White Helmets have saved around 60000 civilians.
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These rescuers are all common civilians. Once tailors, carpenters, students or engineers, they now save lives in one of the most violent places on Earth.
8) Everyday people are now dedicated to this dangerous job. When the bombs rain down, the White Helmets are the first people rush in.
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They are unarmed and often run out of the equipment they need. (A rescuer trapped in rubbles)
If they are attacked while working, they are totally helpless.
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Out of 3000 White Helmets, 135 have died.
Omar, who saved the baby two years ago, is one of them.
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The group also saved the life of Omran Daqneesh, a child who shocked people around the world after footage of him injured in an air strike appeared on the internet last month.
12) The footage of Daqneesh staring into the distance, covered in blood and dust, went viral worldwide.
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“The White Helmets showed courage and passion saving civilians and contributed to humanitarianism.”
Recently, the White Helmets were given an award from the Right Livelihood Foundation and were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
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However, the world’s support was not enough for the group to avoid hardships.
As the Syrian government resumed bombing raids, two out of four White Helmets centers were destroyed.
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“We’ve heard some people are trapped under the rubble of building in the Ansari neighborhood, far from where our center is located. But there’s nothing we can do as we don’t have any means of transportation.” - Ammar al-Selmo, the head of the local Syria Civil Defense
According to a report released on Sept. 25th, the volunteers are stranded as their transportation was destroyed as well.
16) “Even though we don’t know what will happen tomorrow, we will never stop rescuing people until we die. We have no other choice.” They say they will never stop rescue operations.
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The White Helmet volunteers show us that hope is still alive in the midst of war and violence.
기사원문링크: goo.gl/wkNuHY
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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