Let's stop building walls here and start helping refugees overseas.

Did you know that over 4.9 million Syrians have been registered as refugees, as of February 1^st, 2017? The Syrian refugee crisis is the world's largest humanitarian emergency, but President Trump's executive order bans U.S. entry indefinitely for innocent people fleeing the war-torn country. The vast majority of Syrian refugees are currently in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. In Iraq, hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees and Iraqi displaced persons are searching for safe shelter, in an area immersed in fighting and bloodshed. A humanitarian crisis is unfolding inside Iraqi refugee camps, where those who fled devastating conflicts live in squalid conditions. Nearly half of Syrian refugees are under age 14. These children are severely malnourished and susceptible to infections caused by lack of clean water or sanitation facilities, and disastrous hygienic conditions.

Do you know how many Syrian refugees were resettled in the United States between October 2011 and December 2016? Only 18,007 Syrian refugees were resettled in the United States during this 5+ year period. Now, due to President Trump's executive order, suffering Syrian refugees are indefinitely banned from seeking sanctuary in the U.S. At EMERGENCY, we understand the importance of providing free healthcare in refugee camps where otherwise, there would be no access to the most basic medical resources. We all know that only a small number of refugees worldwide are likely to ever be permanently resettled.

Do you know how EMERGENCY is assisting refugees? To help alleviate this humanitarian crisis, EMERGENCY has opened a number of Healthcare Clinics in Iraqi refugee and IDP camps in the Arbat, Kalar, and Khanaquin areas. These centers provide treatment for common medical conditions including respiratory, gastrointestinal, skin and urinary tract infections, as well as chronic health conditions including diabetes and hypertension. The centers provide gynecological and midwifery services for women, a vaccination program for children, and preventive medicine projects. Since 1995, EMERGENCY has helped over 700,000 people in Iraq alone.

What can you do to help those who are trapped in refugee camps? The executive order suspending all refugee admissions for 120 days and drastically cutting the number of refugees who will be accepted in 2017 highlights the importance of EMERGENCY's work to assist vulnerable and suffering people worldwide. We believe that the response to this executive order should not only be marching, protesting, and advocating for those less fortunate than we are, but also donating to organizations like EMERGENCY USA, that work every day to provide much needed healthcare in refugee camps to innocent people affected by war and poverty.

(All data found through the UNHCR and the Migration Policy Institute.)