The 10th Anniversary of the Founding of the Syria Civil Defense - White Helmets

A decade has passed since the signing of the charter that united volunteer search and rescue teams working across Syria. On October 25, 2014, the Syria Civil Defense (The White Helmets) was formally established as a Syrian national organization dedicated to civil protection, saving lives, and providing aid to communities throughout Syria.

From the beginning, our mission has been simple: to save lives. Guided by our slogan adopted from the Quranic verse, “To save a life is to save all of humanity,” we’ve rescued over 128,000 people over the years—our greatest achievement in the past ten years. While the war has forced us to expand our role beyond emergency response, the heart of our work has remained focused on saving lives, even as our services, structure, and programs have evolved.

In the past decade, our teams have responded to tens of thousands of airstrikes and ground assaults, as well as chemical attacks, and natural disasters, including the devastating February 2023 earthquake. We’ve battled fires, handled car accidents, and provided healthcare and first aid to hundreds of thousands of Syrian civilians. We’ve also cleared more than 25,000 unexploded ordnances from war zones and supported infrastructure rebuilding projects, with a focus on schools, hospitals, roads, and sanitation systems.

In addition to our role in search and rescue, we made documenting crimes committed against the Syrian people a central part of our mission, as we strive to achieve justice for all Syrians.

However, this work has come at a high price. The assistance we provide and our efforts to document war crimes have made our volunteers targets of systematic attacks by the Syrian regime, Russia, and their allies, it also exposed them to very harsh physical and mental conditions. On this anniversary, we honor the 312 volunteers who lost their lives and the many others who were injured—many of them victims of double-tap airstrikes by the Syrian regime and Russia while performing their humanitarian duties. These brave individuals inspire us every day, and we remain committed to honoring the path of sacrifice they paved.

Our strong connection with the Syrian people—both those we serve at home and the Syrian diaspora—along with their trust and support, motivates us to continue delivering life-saving aid every day. We take immense pride in this trust and renew our commitment to serve them.

Our accomplishments would not have been possible without the generous support of our partners, donors, and individuals worldwide. We are grateful for the international solidarity shown by people across the world, as well as from the governments that make up our International Donor Group: Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Qatar Fund for Development, United Kingdom and United States of America. Their contributions have allowed us to expand our operations and strengthen our teams’ ability to respond to the challenges we face. We extend our deepest gratitude to everyone who has helped save lives and improve the lives of Syrians.

This anniversary is a reminder of the resilience of the Syrian people and their ability to create institutions grounded in national values and committed to humanitarian principles. These institutions bring Syrians together to save lives, even in the most difficult circumstances of war.

As we look toward the future, we recognize the importance of continuing to develop our programs by strengthening our training, resources, and capacity-building efforts to provide the best possible service. Every life saved is a step toward a brighter future. Our commitment to justice for all Syrians remains firm, and our mission extends beyond geographic boundaries as a global call for solidarity and collective action to save lives.

We reaffirm our dedication to humanitarian principles, believing that supporting humanity, offering aid in times of war, displacement, and disaster, empowering communities, and building resilience are essential to Syria’s future. This vision can only be achieved through our collective efforts, driven by the belief that every action we take today is a seed planted for the future—a future Syria built on justice and peace.