Press releases

“The failure to come to an agreement on the renewal of cross-border aid is a devastating blow to the millions of Syrian families who rely on this aid for clean water, food, health care and shelter," said Oxfam in Syria’s Country Director Moutaz Adham in response to the results of two votes on renewing the UN Security Council’s resolution allowing cross-border aid into Syria which have failed to extend the mandate beyond Friday 10 July.

Oxfam International is pleased to announce Gabriela Bucher as its new Executive Director. Ms Bucher is a leader in the field of gender equality and human rights. She joins Oxfam from Plan International where she had a global leadership role as its Chief Operating Officer. 

The new Greek asylum system is designed to deport people rather than offer them safety and protection, warned the Greek Council for Refugees (GCR) and Oxfam today.

In reaction to the Security Council passing its Coronavirus Ceasefire Resolution, Oxfam’s Head of Humanitarian Campaigns and Advocacy, Fionna Smyth, said: “The UN Security Council’s unanimous vote to support the UN Secretary Generals call for a global ceasefire and to help fight COVID-19 is welcome —and is long overdue."

This serious—and likely irreversible— plan to acquire occupied territory by force is a violation of the most basic principles of international law. 

The pledges made by donor governments are simply not enough to address the Syrian crisis, said Oxfam in reaction to the outcome of the Brussels IV conference on Syria and the region.

Syrians who have already endured almost a decade of war and displacement are now facing unprecedented levels of hunger leaving millions of people acutely vulnerable to Covid-19, international agencies warned today ahead of a key annual conference on the crisis.

People seeking safety are trapped at borders across Eastern Africa due to COVID-19 measures.

Forty-three percent of women surveyed across five countries reported feeling more anxious, depressed, isolated, overworked, or ill because they are having to shoulder even more unpaid care work as a result of the coronavirus crisis, said Oxfam today. 

“It’s deeply concerning that the number of forcibly displaced people has increased for the tenth year in a row to yet another record level. In addition to the violence, persecution, and hardship that these people are fleeing, many are now also facing the threat of the global coronavirus pandemic in overcrowded camps without enough clean water or health facilities", said Fionna Smyth, Oxfam’s Head of Humanitarian Campaigns, in response to the launch of the UNHCR’s annual Global Trends report today.