Under the patronage of Bishop Iyad Twal, Vice-President of Caritas and Vice-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Royal Institute for Inter-faith Studies, an event was organized on the occasion of World Refugee Day by the Royal Institute for Interfaith Studies, in collaboration with Caritas Jordan.
Leading the attendees were Dr. Tagreed Odeh, General Director of the Royal Institute for Inter-faith Studies, and Dr. Amer Al-Hafi, Academic Adviser to the Royal Institute, alongside a number of staff members from the Institute and Caritas Jordan, as well as a group of public figures and representatives of civil society organisations concerned with refugee affairs.
Dr. Tagreed Odeh delivered a speech during the event, highlighting the challenges confronting millions of refugees worldwide and stressing the importance of safeguarding their rights to protection, dignity, and a secure future. She underscored the need to provide refugees with opportunities for stability and resilience, especially amid the increasing global crises driven by armed conflicts, political instability, and economic pressures. She also addressed the Royal Institute’s mission in promoting dialogue and understanding between different religions and cultures, and in fostering humanitarian values that protect human dignity regardless of religion, ethnicity, nationality or personal circumstances.
She referred to the difficulties encountering by both refugees and host communities, including in Jordan, which require comprehensive and sustainable solutions based on justice and the sharing of international responsibility, along with strengthening global cooperation. She also emphasised the importance of the role played by cultural, educational and religious institutions in fostering a culture of dialogue, understanding and empathy, as well as in countering hate speech, and promoting citizenship, coexistence and mutual respect values.
She concluded her speech by stressing the urgent need to support refugees, empower them and defend their rights, and to strengthen efforts aimed at finding fair and sustainable solutions to their suffering, thereby contributing to a better future for all.