Aleppo hospitals overwhelmed by a flood of injured people after air attacks against the population

Air strikes dropped barrels of explosives on the city of Aleppo and its province, resulting in numerous deaths within the civilian population. MdM, which supports seven medical networks inside the country, is one of the rare international medical NGOs providing a humanitarian assistance in Syria.

For the last 15 days, a deadly offensive, led by “barrels” filled with TNT targeted residential areas or public areas such as schools, markets or hospitals. More than 500 people died in these air raids making civilians the first victims. The Syrian medical partners of MdM in Aleppo have witness how catastrophic is the situation and how the flood of injured people in several hospitals of the city is. They denounce the terrible consequences associated to the use of these weapons. Pictures of the victims or dead bodies received by MdM reveal significant mutilations, particularly on women and children who represents more than two third of the injured people.

« I will be haunted until the rest of my life by what I’ve seen over the last few days », explains Doctor F. a Syrian doctor working in one of the four hospitals supported by MdM. « It’s even worse than chemical weapons, because at least you die in only one piece…».

Most of the hospitals are overloaded by patients and are short on medical supplies. Ambulances are damaged, destroyed or without fuel anymore. According to the Syrian medical partners, the medical needs are urgent. That is why MdM has recently sent surgical equipment to achieve more than 150 interventions, medicines and 20 000 blood bags.

MdM reminds that it is imperative that all the parties involved in this conflict respect the humanitarian international right rules, which intend to save civilian population who are not directly involved in the fights. Preventing access to health care to injured populations by targeting hospitals is another crime that we are denouncing