When I learned that Islamic Relief USA undertook a project in Kyrgyzstan of all places, I, like some of my colleagues, could not help but respond, “Kyrgyzstan?” Following that initial reaction, though, I couldn’t help but recall a song from one of those musicals that goes something like, “Tell Me More, Tell Me More.” As a journalist by training, I like to believe curiosity has become second nature. Fortunately, I received more information about it. On Wednesday, July 25, my esteemed colleague Noorullah of the International Programs Department gave an informative presentation about the medical disposables and instruments project that IRUSA did. The presentation was part of the Public Affairs Department’s…

Tufail Hussain – Deputy Director, Islamic Relief UK – writes about meeting Fatouma during his recent visit to drought ravaged Somalia. Dotted around Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia, are camps where countless desperate families arrive in search of food and water. It was at one of these camps, where teams from Islamic Relief regularly distribute food packs, that I first met Fatouma. Fatouma, from a village in the Burhakaba region, around 250km from Mogadishu, told me her harrowing story of survival through the catastrophic drought. “The drought has been with us for years, but in the last 12 months things became unbearable.  My people are farmers, and our lives…

One of the most used terms amongst me and my friends is the phrase “thirst trap”. It’s just a colloquial way of expressing a negative attribute that speaks to desperation, and it has nothing to do with water. Last week on World Water Day, I could not help but to think thirst trapping is a real subject matter in our world. Yet, thirst trapping is not a matter of desperation but it is a matter of cyclical poverty, a trap that continues to cycle without the ability to quench a thirst. From the moment, we are born, we are trapped by the element of water. As newborns, we are 75…

A terrible sense of déjà vu hangs over the Horn of Africa, where fears are growing that a severe drought could soon become a famine. Two years of below-average rainfall have pushed the self-declared independent state of Somaliland to the brink of starvation and nomadic families, who move with the seasons in search of fertile land and fresh water, have faced the heart-wrenching choice between feeding themselves and feeding their animals. The goats were first to die, followed by the cows. Now even the bodies of drought-resistant camels lie beside shriveled cacti at the side of the road. For families who rely on these animals for meat, milk, transportation and…

Iqra Shaikh recently attended a disaster response deployment with IRUSA. She graduated from UC Berkeley and founded Major Probs, an organization dedicated to inspiring and empowering students globally. She reflects on her experience with ReliefLab. A few weeks ago, I had the honor and privilege of volunteering as a part of a Disaster Response Team aiding those impacted by the Orville Dam evacuations and the San Jose flooding. This experience opened my eyes and made me realize a few things—here are a few of my reflections and thoughts. 1. Humanity Transcends All Religions I have always believed in this notion, but it is something that I have rarely seen in…

2011 was the year I joined Islamic Relief USA. 2011 is also the same year that conflict erupted in my mother and father’s native Syria. Year after year of the conflict, the death and displacement of my people would only increase exponentially as time passed. First with Syrians pouring into neighboring countries like Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon to flee violence, and then expending to Europe and eventually even over the Atlantic ocean to America and Canada. With the massive exodus came huge media attention and much financial support to many humanitarian organizations trying to put a bandaid on the bleeding and lend a helping hand. Celebrities spoke out to bring…