Still on a mission in Syria!
Published on 6. December 2018
from CADUS-PR
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After our mobile hospital crossed the border to Rojava, things have gone quiet around our commitment in Northern Syria. Rest assured, we have not been idle in the region — but safety considerations left us in doubt of how to report.
Now down to the facts. What is it that's going on for CADUS in Northern Syria?
As planned, we handed the mobile hospital over to our partner organisation, Heyva Sor a Kurd. Our team introduced them to the technical equipment and discussed medical aspects. Also, we weighed in on how and where the trucks would be used; we were hoping our teams could accompany the project to some of the locations. Our local partners opted for a mission in the vicinity of Afrin.
Whilst we had no hesitation to accept their decision, it also meant that the maximum of risk we were able to take was exceeded. Unfortunately, Turkey and its allies in the Free Syrian Army cannot be trusted to adhere to the Geneva conventions in the Afrin region, and we could not stand responsible for subjecting parts of our teams to possible injury through Turkish air strikes. Hence, the Mobile Hospital is still in full operation, but is run by a Heyva Sor crew now.
Medicare in Raqqa
Despite these circumstances, we have not left the region unattended. Assisted by Heyva Sor a Kurd, we are now executing a project in the so-called Islamic State's former capital, Raqqa. For the most part we are dealing with primary health care there, assuming all the tasks of a general practitioner.
In the course of this project, significantly more women and children than men are being treated, summing up to more than 6,000 individuals over the last 5 months. Whilst the medical crew was recruited from local personnel, our core team “only” assumes project planning, coordination and accounting. We also visit the medical care station on a regular basis, but will not to report on this due to safety concerns. Traveling in areas of conflict is never without peril, and keeping the details unknown helps us reduce the risk.
The takeaway: Yes, we remain active in Northern Syria, and the activity keeps eating up capacities at Berlin. However, we are not able and willing to report a lot, which makes it hard to explain our engagement and commitment to our donators.
Thank you so much for all your support in the past. We hope you still feel inspired to keep up your assistance in the future.
Published
Author: by Jonas Grünwald
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