Women and Children in Jordan’s Syrian Refugee Camp having been Abandoned by the Jordanian Government, Battle for Survival under Severe Weather Conditions

Jordan is currently experiencing some of the harshest weather conditions with freezing temperatures and torrential rains, causing the Muslims in the country’s Syrian refugee camp to fight for survival due to atrocious living conditions. Heavy rain, snow and 60kph storm winds have reduced the entire area to a muddy swamp land with tents having been blown over and flooded. The majority of the camp’s population are women and children under 18, with many thousands of infants, and aid agencies report that it is this vulnerable group that are at most risk from malnutrition and hypothermia with inadequate resources to cover their needs. Many are already suffering from life threatening illness with minimal medical care and there have been reports of several deaths of children, including recently a 9 month year old baby who died due to exposure and severe diarrhoea. Al Jazeera and other media outlets reported that violent protests broke out in the Zaatari camp on Tuesday 8th January due to the intolerable conditions facing the people.

Dr Nazreen Nawaz, Member of The Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir commented:

“The situation for Syrian refugees is an unacceptable situation which brings shame upon the Jordanian government and the surrounding leaders who are all complicit in their oppression. The world knows well that Syria’s Muslims are fleeing the most horrific persecution by the tyrannical Assad regime and seeking refuge in neighbouring areas. But instead of finding hope and comfort, they have been greeted with hardship and misery, and placed in death-trap camps that many have expressed to be more dangerous to their wellbeing than the state from which they fled. This has been a case of ‘jumping out of the pan and into the fire.’ The leaders in the region have shown no political will in addressing the needs of the Syrian Muslims. The Women of Hizb ut Tahrir account every single Muslim ruler for failing to protect the lives of the Muslims of Syria and to provide the refugees their basic needs. We account all these Western-backed governments of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Iran that have been complicit in allowing this human catastrophe to unfold. It is our opinion that they all have blood on their hands. They are the representation of the Words of Allah:

((الَّذينَ يَنقُضونَ عَهدَ اللَّهِ مِن بَعدِ ميثـٰقِهِ وَيَقطَعونَ ما أَمَرَ‌ اللَّهُ بِهِ أَن يوصَلَ وَيُفسِدونَ فِى الأَر‌ضِ ۚ أُولـٰئِكَ هُمُ الخـٰسِر‌ونَ))

“Who break the covenant of Allah after contracting it and sever that which Allah has ordered to be joined and cause corruption on earth. It is those who are the losers.” [TMQ 2:27]

“The Khilafah would never deal with the killing and persecution of Muslims as a refugee matter, but as one that requires military intervention from the state’s army so solve the problem from its root. This was the case at the time of the Umayyid Khilafah, when Muhammad bin Qasim was sent with a large army by the governor Al-Hajjaj Ibn Yusuf Al-Thaqafi to defend some Muslim women and children who came under attack from Sindh. Furthermore, the unrivalled humane treatment of non-Muslim refugees fleeing persecution from non-Islamic states historically is well documented, as seen by how the Jews who fled Christian Spain during the Spanish Inquisition and sought protection under the Khilafah, were quickly recognised as citizens of the Islamic State and prospered under its rule. Infact they were treated so well under the Khilafah that they never felt the need to return to their original homelands. It is only the non-nationalistic Islamic Khilafah system that can deliver real rights to humanity, protect the blood of our Ummah, and remove the suffering of the daughters and children of Islam. The women of Hizb ut Tahrir wish to let our dear brothers and sisters of Syria know that we utterly condemn the negligence by the Muslim rulers of safeguarding their lives and that we are working globally with all our efforts to remove their state of oppression by carrying this dawah to establish their shield and protector the Khilafah. We call Muslim women to join us in this noble work to bring to life once again the blessed system of Allah under which the believers can once again live in justice, peace, and security.”

Dr. Nazreen Nawaz

Member of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir