We, the undersigned civil society organizations, condemn and deplore the repeated and deliberate attacks on Syrian civil society organizations operating in different regions of Syria. We declare our solidarity and support for these organizations, which have been subjected to all kinds of pressures and violations to impede their duties towards the Syrian society. The last of these attacks were the crime that targeted a center for Syria Civil Defence (SCD) in the city of Sarmin in northern Syria, and another that targeted an office operated by three civil society organizations in the city of Douma in southern Syria.
On August 12, 2017, a center for Syria Civil Defence, known as White Helmets, in Sarmin in Idlib countryside was subjected to an armed attack in which seven members of the center team were killed, and the center was completely robbed. On August 13, 2017, the Popular Movement attacked an office which is shared by the Violations Documentation Center in Syria (VDC), Local Development and Small Projects Support (LDSPS) and Hurras Network in the city of Douma in the countryside of Damascus. The Popular Movement is a group of followers of Jaysh Al Islam. The assailants assaulted staff and visitors that were present with physical violence, sticks and sharp metal objects. The assailants stole certain contents of the office, destroyed the rest and threatened to burn down the office next time.