World Jewish Relief’s Darfur emergency appeal has raised over £200,000 in its first year, benefiting 30,000 women, children and elderly refugees.

The London-based humanitarian charity launched the appeal believing that the community would identify with a cause “that resonates so closely with our own horrific past”.

Major donations account for about one-third of the cash and the appeal has received a steady stream of small contributions. Schools and synagogues have also held fundraisers.

The charity is involved in two projects, one providing shelter and support for elderly internally displaced people in the camps, the other helping to keep women and girls in the camps safe from sexual exploitation. The charity liaises closely with its partners on the ground to ensure that the aid is properly targeted.

WJR chief executive Paul Anticoni told the JC that “the scale of humanitarian need among the huge displaced Darfuri community, is unimaginable. The Darfur problem is as great today as it was almost five years ago.”