On July 29th 2002 the Russian newspaper Izvestia invited Islamic Relief to a press conference at their Moscow headquarters. Dr Hany El Banna, President of IR, was accompanied by his PA, Khalid Almulad, and Mohammed Allaa Ammar, IR Russian Federation country director.

The press conference gave Dr Hany the opportunity to thank the Russian Federation and regional government authorities for their support of IR's humanitarian programmes in the North Caucasus.

The conference was attended by thirty reporters from newspapers across the Russian Federation, as well as several television channels, providing valuable publicity for the organisation.

In his speech Dr Hany detailed the work Islamic Relief has been carrying out in the North Caucasus, saying, "Our main goal is to return people to their homes, and save them from starvation and disease. That is why we are going to build homes, schools and hospitals in Ingushetia, Chechnya and in other regions in the South of Russia affected by the recent disaster."

Dr Hany spoke about how IR humanitarian aid programmes worth over $2 million had been carried out in partnership with the UN WFP. This humanitarian assistance has benefited more than 100,000 Russians.

Dr Hany also emphasised Islamic Relief's NGO status, and explained to the Russian press that the charity has no political affiliations and is only concerned with providing help to those in need.

The Moscow press conference resulted in positive media coverage for Islamic Relief across the Russian Federation. By speaking to the public at such events IR demonstrates its commitment to maintaining a high level of transparency in its work. This enables the organisation to build up trust amongst both the people and the authorities.