Settlers’ assaults against Palestinian communities take a variety of forms from intimidation to physical assault, stone throwing or destruction  of property, trees, or crops. They tend to be repetitive, leading to a constant harassment of Palestinian communities or targeted houses. Some of them known as “price tag attacks” are more punctual and respond to actions or policies that settlers interpret as going against their interest (such as the dismantlement of an illegal outpost).

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While the truces and attempts at resuscitation of a moribund peace process multiply, civilians continue to bear the brunt of the Syrian conflict and humanitarian operations remain dangerous. Médecins du Monde asks for a lasting truce to facilitate humanitarian work and protect populations.

Thursday, May 5^th, a bombing of an internally displaced population’s camp nearby the city of Sarmada, in Idlib governorate, caused 25 deaths and dozens injured. “The targeting of health and humanitarian facilities has almost been daily for 5 years. The resolution of the Security Council voted last week to protect hospitals is a first step but steps must be taken against the parties of the conflict. Otherwise, the situation will continue to deteriorate, “said Dr. Françoise Sivignon, president of Médecins du Monde.

Access to the wounded and to care settings and the deployment of assistance are increasingly hampered for NGOs and partners on site. In Aleppo, intensified bombing put the population under siege while on the borders of neighbouring countries civilians cannot escape the civil war, which has already caused the displacement of over 270 000 people.

“The displaced populations’ camps to the Turkish border multiply and are saturated: populations are exhausted and their health is deteriorating. The opening of borders to neighboring countries and Europe would respond to the urgency of the situation and arrange humanitarian aid. But the only viable solution remains political, despite the current diplomatic procrastination, “she adds.

As we approach the end of the current truce in Aleppo and upstream of the meeting of the GISS (group of international support for Syria) on the 17^th of May in Vienna, Médecins du Monde calls for the establishment of a permanent truce. We reaffirm the need to make health care settings sacred in compliance with international humanitarian law to protect these populations.

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In Syria, Médecins du Monde has set up fixed and mobile clinics to overcome the lack of infrastructure in the northern part of the country thus provide primary health care and reproductive health care to the population of the governorates of Idlib. The association also supports Syrian partners and helps to provide health centers and hospitals still functioning in the governorates of Aleppo, Idlib and Deraa with medicine, equipment and supplies which are severely lacking in these times of war.

A structure supported by Médecins du Monde was destroyed.

Despite the cessation of hostilities proclaimed in February 27, 2016, bombing and fighting has intensified since the beginning of April in the governorates of Idlib and Aleppo. Médecins du Monde  (MdM) denounces the destruction of its structures and calls for making health care settings sacred.

The recent bombings in the Aleppo region killed more than 50 civilians this week.

The raids led by the regime also targeted the Al Marja health center in which operates one of MdM partners on site, UOSSM (Union of Medical Relief and Care Organizations).

The building was completely destroyed. At the time of writing, an aftermath is currently underway.

In the city of Aleppo, MdM and its partners supply medical equipment in 4 hospitals and support 6 health structures.

“The raids are daily again, the truce appears to end. Schools, hospitals and ambulances are always targeted, in complete violation of the international law. Access to health services has worsened considerably: it is increasingly difficult to do our job and to have access to patients in a context where the population is deprived of assistance, “said Dr. Françoise Sivignon, president of Médecins du Monde.

Médecins du Monde refuses the deprivation of the population of access to healthcare and demands the protection of healthcare workers and injured people.

The war in Syria enters its sixth year, caused more than 270,000 deaths and resulted the displacement of more than half of its population.

On the 5th of April 2016, our mission in Lebanon participated in the National NGO fair that was held at Sagesse University with 122 NGOs from all around Lebanon.

The aim of the event is to provide a platform for the NGOs to present their respective mission, and introduce the public to their activities.

In Lebanon, we work to provide better access to health services and mental health support to Syrian Refugees and vulnerable Lebanese.

Check out our programmes in Lebanon

A wave of demolitions in the first months of 2016

Since the beginning of January, the intensity of demolitions and displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank have reached the highest levels in seven years. Between 1 January and 15 March 2016, 378 Palestinian homes and structures were demolished by the Israeli Civil Administration (ICA), displacing 750 Palestinians, including 260 children, as much as half of the Palestinians displaced during the whole year of 2015[1]. Most of the demolitions happened on the ground that Palestinians had no building permits. Yet, only 1.5% of the Palestinian permits applications are approved, which leaves them with no choice other than building illegally.

Most of the affected villages are Bedouin and herding communities, coming from Hebron or already refugees after being expelled from the Negev during the Nakba of 1948. They are targeted by relocation plans advanced by the government of Israel. Their displacement will allow the expansion of existing settlements, notably Ma’ale Efrayim, Shiloh, and Petza’el in North West Bank, and Ma’ale Adumim (E1 plan).

Bedouins generally refuse to be transferred to urban areas as it involves the loss of their main source of livelihood (herding) and the loss of their culture and traditions that depend on a rural lifestyle.

The interventions of Medicos del Mundo (MdM Spain) and Médecins du Monde (MdM France)

MdM Spain is working in Palestine since 2006 to improve the access and the quality of public mental health services, and since 2014 to improve the resilience of 34 Bedouin communities affected or at risk to be affected by critical incidents in the Jericho District, Jordan Valley (C Area) and East Jerusalem (E1 district).

MdM France is implementing a mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) emergency response program to prevent and mitigate the psychological and psychosocial impacts of critical incidents on Palestinian communities living in 31 communities of the Northern West Bank (Nablus, Salfit, Qalqiliya). Since the beginning of 2016, considering the wave of demolitions, the team of MdM France has extended its area of intervention to respond to the needs of psychosocial support in other communities impacted by demolitions in the North West Bank (including Tubas governorate).

Both organizations are providing Psychological First Aid (PFA), following emergency Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) protocols. They focus on crisis intervention, organization of collective response, and referral to mental health specialized services.

This briefing gives an overview of the psychosocial risks associated with demolitions and displacements, and the challenges of humanitarian interventions to address these impacts that are often disregarded in emergency contexts. It also provides key information and recommendations to the international community, donors and NGOs.

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Since 2012, Médecins du Monde France (MdM) is implementing a program to provide emergency Mental Health and Psychosocial support (MHPSS) to people affected by violent events in 27 villages in the North West Bank. The emergency MHPSS takes place within 72 hours after a critical incident. Whenever necessary, our psychosocial team can perform psychosocial First Aid (PFA). We return to the beneficiaries between ten to fifteen days after the PFA to assess their situation and identify potential needs for further support or referral to specialized mental health services. We support the direct victims and their families, but also, in certain serious cases, individuals indirectly involved in the incident: neighbours, the members of the village in general, colleagues of the victims…

Read our fact sheet

Since 15 March 2011, the civil war in Syria has caused the deaths of 250,000 people, with one and a half million injured. It has led to the internal displacement of seven million people and driven five million refugees to flee for their lives. Today 13.5 million men, women and children are in need of assistance, a figure which represents around 60% of the population (estimated before the conflict at 21 million)[1].

How can healthcare be provided to these survivors when almost 70% of health centres are barely operating or can no longer operate at all[2] ? Access to health services is under threat from the escalating violence, the collapse of the healthcare system and extremely inadequate supplies of essential medical equipment.

2015 was marked by repeated attacks on healthcare facilities. Between August 2012 and December 2015, 330 healthcare facilities (including 177 hospitals) were destroyed by bombardment. In 2015, a total of 112 attacks were recorded. Among the 26 health centres supported by Doctors of the World, seven of them were deliberately targeted. Since the beginning of the conflict, around 700 healthcare staff have lost their lives[3].

In this context of chaos, over half of Syria’s healthcare workers have left the country [4]. The majority of these refugees are living in neighbouring countries or are trying to reach Europe, where they are unable to practise their profession, even among their compatriots.

The recent bombardments carried out on 15 February 2016 against hospitals are evidence of this practice of targeting healthcare facilities which is a complete violation of humanitarian law and international conventions. Since Russia officially entered the war, the conflict has intensified markedly. The Aleppo Governorate is currently the most severely affected, involving almost three million people, with over one million displaced[5].

Survivors who manage to leave Syria are still at risk of losing their lives. In 2015, 3,771 people perished in the Mediterranean Sea, over 800 of them in the Eastern Mediterranean[6]. Yet once they have overcome this danger, the Syrians face renewed injury and trauma from walls, barriers and barbed wire. While over 4.5 million Syrian refugees are currently in just five countries[7] – Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt – Europe is continuing to construct a fortress. How many more people will have to die?

“We call on the European Union to respond collectively to this unprecedented humanitarian crisis, without doubt the most serious since the Second World War, by welcoming across its borders these refugees who have survived such barbarism. This war has already been a terrible waste for the country and its people, but this is now a historic moment for Europe. The Member States can choose to offer solidarity and protection to these traumatised families by extending to them a dignified welcome which upholds the founding values of Europe”, declared Dr Françoise Sivignon, President of Doctors of the World France.

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DOCTORS OF THE WORLD’S WORK IN SYRIA AND NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES in 2015

Doctors of the World sees the Syrian crisis as a regional crisis. The organisation has been active in Syria since 2008 and also provides assistance to Syrian and Iraqi refugees and displaced persons in the neighbouring countries of Iraq, Turkey and Jordan.

In Syria, Doctors of the World has established fixed and mobile clinics to compensate for the lack of infrastructure in the north of the country and to offer primary healthcare to the population of Idlib Governorate. The organisation also supports Syrian partners and contributes to the salary costs of their healthcare staff. It supplies medication, equipment and consumables, of which there are terrible wartime shortages, to the health centres and hospitals which are still operating in Aleppo, Damascus and Daraa. In addition, Doctors of the World supports two post-operative care centres in northern Syria and in Reyhanli, in southern Turkey. The staff are trained to treat and care for victims of the conflict who are seriously injured and traumatised and are seeking to recover from their experiences.

In 2015, there were 166,252 consultations at the Doctors of the World clinics in Syria and 512,907 patients were treated in the 26 health centres supported by the organisation.

In Lebanon, the 1,069,111 Syrian refugees officially registered with the UNHCR have difficulty in accessing essential services. Doctors of the World supports five health centres and a mobile clinic in southern Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley, where there are particularly large numbers of refugees. Through Doctors of the World, victims of the Syrian conflict and the most vulnerable Lebanese people are able to receive care and medication free of charge. Working with local partners provides them with financial support and facilitates work on the quality of care and support for the beneficiaries.

For the treatment and care of psychological problems experienced by the groups concerned, psychotherapists provide consultations and therapeutic follow-up in the centres. They are supported by a team of community workers who carry out prevention and advice work within the communities themselves.

In 2015, there were 107,032 consultations at the health centres supported. Over 1,300 people attended at least one consultation with a psychologist and 4,754 people benefited from mental health prevention and referral programmes. Overall, our activities reached over 75,000 beneficiaries.

In Iraq, the hostilities which have affected the north and west of the country since 2014 have led to the displacement of over three million Iraqis. Yezidi, Christian or Muslim – they have all fled to escape the rapid advance of Islamic State. Those directly exposed, the displaced populations, the Syrian refugees and the people of the host regions are all direct or indirect victims of the conflict.

Doctors of the World is active in the displaced persons’ camps in Iraqi Kurdistan and in Kirkuk Governorate, as well as in the Iraqi refugee camps in Turkey, in southern Anatolia. Medical teams provide primary and sexual and reproductive healthcare, paediatric care, psychosocial support, nutritional screening and health education sessions.  Further south, in Kirkuk Governorate, Doctors of the World has set up three mobile clinics to respond to the massive new influx of displaced persons and the needs of the host populations. In addition, the organisation is working with Iraqi and Syrian refugees on the other side of the border, in the camps of Diyarbakir and Batman.

In 2015, 110,296 medical consultations were provided, including 1,090 on sexual and reproductive health issues.

In Jordan, the 635,000 Syrian refugees represent over 10% of the overall population. The vast majority of them are living in the north of the country, in urban areas and in camps, in particular the Zaatari and Azraq camps. Since the end of 2014, the refugees have been required to make a financial contribution for the healthcare services provided by state medical centres.

Doctors of the World has set up a health centre in Ramtha and two others at the Zaatari camp and has provided them with essential medicines. This means the refugees can access basic care and also receive ongoing care for chronic illnesses. The organisation also provides health education workshops, infant immunisations, family planning services and antenatal care.

Psychologists and community teams are also available at the health centres and in the urban areas and the Zaatari camp. General practitioners are trained to identify people suffering from mental health problems.

In 2015, 18,000 Syrian refugees received psychological support; 79,000 people at the Zaatari camp and 80,000 in Ramtha were able to access our services. 200,000 primary care consultations were provided at the Doctors of the World health centres at Zaatari and Ramtha.

Check out the  portraits of five Syrian families in exile

Paris, France, Article from the press agency AFP

A Médecins du Monde – MdM hospital was bombed on Monday in Syria, killing a nurse, said the NGO’s chairwoman based in Paris to the AFP, who asks to “make the medical care areas sacred” echoing the call of Doctors without Borders.

“We have a hospital at Maarat al-nouman” between Alepo and Lattaquieh in Idlib disctrict which was partially bombed but still works. One person has died, a nurse”, explains Françoise Sivignon, chairwoman of MdM.

On Monday, a shelling that targeted a Hospital backed by Doctors without Borders in the same North Western region of Syria caused the death of 25 people according to a new assessment by Doctors without Borders.

Mrs. Sivignon who’s a doctor as well, is outraged by “the systematic targeting of the care structures”, adding that the NGO’s partners in Syria “are systematically hit as well”.

Another NGO, Doctors without Borders, indicated in a report published on Thursday that in 2015, 63 structures which it backs were hit by air raids and rocket attacks. According to the document, these raids and attacks lead to the total destruction of 12 of them and 81 members of the medical staff were either killed or wounded.

“After 5 years of war in Syria, the sanitary infrastructures are destroyed” notes the non-governmental organization which calls for an independent investigation.

There is no access to the most vulnerable populations, we cannot do our job, our partners cannot do their job and people need to move more and more to seek treatment, “also notes the chairwoman of Médecins du Monde, adding that she is “very very worried”.

The conflict in Syria caused a total of 260,000 deaths and forced millions to flee the country.

Gaza- On Tuesday, February 9^th 2016, Médecins du Monde France (MdM), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, conducted a practical medical training on emergency preparedness during crises at the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) center. This training included 40 causalities to be referred to four different clinics by 8 ambulances, the objective being to assess the quality of the triage of the cases on the field, the coordination of the ambulances, and the performance of the medical staff in the clinics.

This training is one of the activities under the “Emergency Preparedness Plan” Project implemented by MdM in Gaza and North Gaza governorates for almost a year. The project targets community members through Basic Life Support (BLS) training to farmers and fishermen, as well as medical staff in Primary Health Care (PHC) centers and Emergency Medical services (EMS) centers who were trained on emergency management and triage in situation of crisis.

Dr. Ahmed Abouteir – medical coordinator at MdM says, “The project aims to enable the community members to deal with causalities on the spot during emergencies and to provide the needed first aid till the arrival of the medical support.” As for the cooperation with the Ministry of health, Abouteir explains: “We work together to improve the efficiency of EMS and PHC staff regarding quick response, triage management and evacuation of causalities. We also work on increasing the capacity of primary health care centers to receive urgent cases in order to decrease the pressure on hospitals in a context of crisis.”

MdM has also distributed BLS kits to community members and provided essential drugs, disposals and communication devices to four primary health care centers and emergency medical services in Gaza and North Gaza governorates.

MdM has been present in the occupied Palestinian territories since 1995 and it has started working in the Gaza Strip since 2002. Today, it has three main programmes: Emergency Preparedness Programme, Mental Health Programme and Sexual and Reproductive Health Programme.