The Syrian Rose

Canada welcomes Syrian refugees with open arms 

This week, Canada welcomed the first of the 25,000 Syrian refugees it intends to accept. This is more than twice the amount that President Obama plans to resettle in the U.S within the next year. Canada's prime minister Justin Trudeau promises to resettle all 25,000 refugees by the end of February 2016. Previously, the Liberal party had promised to accept 25,000 refugees by the end of 2015, but the timeline was extended after protests that the 2015 end of the year deadline was rushed, and would not allow for accurate security measures to be upheld.

The refugees were greeted with songs, clothes, and by the Prime Minister himself. Trudeau personally met with refugees at Toronto Airport, and presented one young refugee with a coat and teddy bear. 

The headline of the Toronto Star included the words "Welcome to Canada" in Arabic, and a heartwarming front page article that warmly welcomed Syrian refugees, "You're with family now".

One of the most inspiring, and heartfelt welcomes that I saw on the internet was a Canadian choir singing Tala'a al Badru Alaina. This is a song which was sung in a similar situation about 1400 years ago when the Prophet Muhammad and his followers sought refugee in the city of Medina from Makkans who were persecuting them. To have them sing it in Arabic, and to sing it in such a situation... it is an emotional experience, one that I have no doubt Syrian refugees will appreciate. 

Foreign fighters numbers' double in Syria

The number of foreign fighters in Syria has doubled in the past year alone, officials say. The Soufan Group, a intelligence firm founded by former FBI agent Ali Soufan, reported that the number of foreign fighters in Syria had gone up from 12,000 in the previous year to 27,000-31,000.

The report also states that, according to the Russian Federation, the number of Russians joining the Islamic State has gone up from 800 in June of 2014 to 2,400.

Syrian refugees in the West

The Paris attacks have spurred intense debate worldwide over the fate of Syrian refugees in Europe and the United States. Now that Daesh has shown what it is capable of, many fear that Daesh is looking to further its interests in the West by sending operatives disguised as refugees. Anti-immigration protests have spread across Europe, and in the U.S the subject is being heavily among politicians. Presidential candidates have weighed of both parties have weighed in on the matter, and a bill was recently passed in the House of Representatives that is meant to hinder the flow of Syrians into the United States. This bill opposes Obama's plans to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees within the next year. Many believe that the planned 18-month screening/vetting process is not enough to dismiss the security risks refugees may pose. 

Russian attacks continue. Over 403 Syrian civilians reported dead as a result of the campaign

According to the Syrian Observatory, more more than 400 Syrian civilians have been killed as a result of Russian airstrikes on ISIS. SOHR reports that, of the 400 dead, 97 were children. Russia has recently escalated strikes on Syria in the wake of the Paris attacks, and does not plan on reducing Russian military action in Syria any time soon, according to President Putin.