Secretary-General of the Syrian Coalition Nazir Hakim met with Director of the Syrian Civil Defense Raed Saleh at the headquarters of the Coalition in Istanbul on Thursday.
The meeting discussed a mechanism for communication and coordination to facilitate the work of the civil defense corps, known as the “White Helmets.” It also discussed ways to make use of the outcome of the conference held on 28 June in Germany on the elimination of chemical and biological weapons. Syrian civilians have suffered a lot as a result of the Assad regime’s repeated use of these weapons.
Hakim called for the formation of military, medical, political, and humanitarian teams to aid the civil defense and medical teams in carrying out their duties, provide services to the civilian population and save lives during attacks by the Assad regime and its allies.
Hakim stressed the need for coordination between the White Helmets and the Coalition to better serve the civilian population and alleviate their suffering.
Moreover, Hakim stressed the need to gather evidence on the Assad regime’s use of these prohibited weapons to be presented during the upcoming “NCT USA 2017” conference which will be held in Washington on 19-21 September. He also suggested the submission of a joint letter between the Coalition and the White Helmets on the crimes being committed by the Assad regime and its supporters against civilians in Syria and the need to protect civilians and consolidate the ceasefire agreement. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)