Radio Rozana, March 9, 2020
Syrian women have proven themselves during the past years of war in all fields, whether medical, civil society organizations, and others, winning international awards and leaving their mark on history.
Khoulani was honored in the United States, attended by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, among 12 women from around the world, for her human rights activism and peace efforts in Syria, according to the US State Department’s official spokesperson.
Khoulani hails from the city of Daraya in the countryside of Damascus, and she is a civil society activist who was arrested by Syrian regime forces for six months due to her peaceful activism. She was released in 2014, and her husband was also detained for two and a half years in “Sednaya” prison.
In early February of last year, Germany honored the young Syrian activist Muzon Almellehan, 21, with the “Dresden” Peace Prize, for her efforts and endeavors to provide education opportunities for children and youth, especially refugees.
Almellehan received the award in the German city of Dresden, valued at 10,000 euros, previously awarded to former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev and war photographer James Nachtwey.
Almellehan and her family were resettled in Britain after spending 3 years in the Zaatari camp on the Syrian-Jordanian border. In 2017, the United Nations appointed her as a Goodwill Ambassador for her efforts, making her the youngest ambassador and the first refugee to assume this role at the time. She was also selected by Time magazine as one of the 30 most influential teenagers in the world in 2017.
In mid-January of last year, the European Council awarded the Syrian doctor Amani Ballour the “Walneri” Prize for 2020, for her significant role in saving the wounded during the years of war in Syria.
Dr. Ballour managed the underground “Cave” hospital in Eastern Ghouta, Damascus countryside, for 6 years, accommodating about 100 staff, between the period 2012 – 2018.
The European Council awards the “Walneri” Prize every two years since 2014, in memory of Raoul Wallenberg, who contributed to saving many Jews from the Nazi Holocaust.
In May of last year, Syrian engineer Lina Saab, 32, won the Best Women in Europe in Engineering and Construction award for 2019 in the Economic Development category.
Saab competed against 450 women from various European countries in the European Women in Architecture and Engineering Award competition, with only 9 finalists reaching the final stage for each category.
Saab, a Syrian engineer from Deir ez-Zor, graduated from the Faculty of Civil Engineering at the University of Damascus, specializing in water engineering. She obtained a master’s degree in information technology in 2012 and then pursued water engineering studies at the University of Exeter in London in 2015, earning a master’s degree for her research on the use of artificial intelligence in water treatment and provision.
Architect Rania Kaadan won the Best Young Woman in Construction award at the European Women’s Award ceremony in London.
Kaadan specialized in advanced architectural design, graduated from Aleppo University, and worked for several leading architectural firms in the Middle East before moving to Britain to pursue her master’s degree and work at “Infinite” engineering consultancy company
