The merciless killing of a baby in a Hospital in Zemio, Central African Republic (CAR), where the medical humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) runs a project, points to the extreme brutality against civilians in the escalating conflict, as the number of safe spaces dwindles. On Tuesday 11 July, two armed men arrived … Read more
Name : Designation : Covered in dust, four-year-old Ahmed* sits on his father`s lap outside the MSF hospital in west Mosul. The boy devours a biscuit that’s just been handed to him, covering his face in chocolate. For the moment, Ahmed seems distracted from the horrors he`s survived, including the death of his two brothers. … Read more
Fighting resumed early this morning in Zemio, a town in the east of the Central African Republic (CAR), where combats took place from Wednesday 28 June to Friday 30 June. The violence has displaced between 15,000 and 20,000 people. More than 4,000 sought refuge at the health centre, 5,000 at the Catholic mission and between … Read more
Dr FederiCa Zamatto, MSF medical referent on torture There have been times I have seen the same patients over and over again for weeks. I would arrive at the surgery and see the same faces queuing up to seek help. They would complain of headaches, general body pain and sleeping problems. I’d prescribe them treatment but nothing … Read more
Amsterdam/Syria – As fighting intensifies for control of the Syrian city of Raqqa, people fleeing the city and surrounding villages must decide whether to stay put under heavy bombardment or leave the city by crossing active frontlines and minefields, says international medical organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). “Parents have to make an impossible decision,” says … Read more
‘Will Bambari be next?’ This is the question on everyone’s lips in Central African Republic’s second city and commercial hub. Its residents worry that the violence engulfing the cities of Bangassou and Bria since early May in the form of brutal massacres could soon spread to Bambari, with a repetition of the bloodshed of the … Read more
When Ahmed* arrived at MSF’s field hospital south of the Iraqi city of Mosul, many of the hospital’s staff burst into tears. For years, Ahmed, a skilled nurse, had been their colleague, caring for the sick and injured of west Mosul but now he was their patient and in need of urgent medical care. Two … Read more
Name : Designation : Narcisse Wega Kwekam is the deputy emergency programme manager for Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). He recently returned from Tanganyika province, an area where clashes between communities have forced large numbers of people to leave their homes. Many are subsequently living in informal settlements, and food remains a major concern. … Read more
Respect for patients and medical facilities must be unequivocally maintained to permit a continued minimum level of healthcare in the country Brussels/Bangui – In the evening of 24 May 2017, an armed man entered Bangassou hospital, which is managed by Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and the Ministry of Health. He inflicted violence on … Read more
Name : Designation : A testimony by Rene Colgo, deputy head of mission presently coordinating the MSF emergency response in Bangassou. We had known for weeks that they were getting closer… We were told they were 60 kilometres away. Then, two weeks ago, as we were on our weekly visit to the health centre of … Read more