Armed Conflict

Attacks Across Afghanistan Kill 24, Including 2 Health Workers

Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Roadside bombs and insurgent attacks killed at least 24 people in five separate attacks across Afghanistan as violence steadily rises during this year's spring fighting season, officials said Wednesday. So far, April has been the deadliest month this year for Afghan and foreign civilians and security forces. According to an Associated Press tally, 182 people have been killed in violence around the nation this month. […] In northern Jowzjan province, police chief Aziz Ghayrat said insurgents opened fire on elders in a village and two health workers were killed in the crossfire.

Health Under Fire: The Targeting of Medical Workers in Conflict Zones

Wednesday, April 10, 2013
On April 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Harvard University’s Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research is hosting a live webinar. Health Under Fire: The Targeting of Medical Workers in Conflict Zones will address a number of legal, political, and professional dilemmas that this situation presents and will consider the following questions:

Protecting Doctors in Syria

Tuesday, April 2, 2013
The New York Times published a letter from Leonard Rubenstein in response to the March 24 article, “In Syria’s Civil War, Doctors Find Themselves in Cross Hairs.” “Syria’s arrest, imprisonment, torture and murder of doctors and nurses for providing medical care to its enemies warrants not only condemnation but also referral to the United Nations Security Council for prosecution for war crimes,” Rubenstein wrote.

Human Rights Council Urges Protection of Children's Health during Armed Conflict

Monday, April 1, 2013
At the twenty-second session of the Human Rights Council in March, the council passed a resolution on children and the right to health (Rights of the child: the right of the child to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health). In a section on “Health issues relating to children requiring special attention,” the council included language on children affected by armed conflicts. Paragraphs 25 and 27 are of particular interest to the work of the Safeguarding Health in Conflict coalition:

Report Describes Ongoing Challenges in Mali's Health System Due to Conflict

Friday, March 22, 2013
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs published a new report on the complex emergency situation in Mali. The report highlights some of the current challenges the health system is still facing in the wake of armed conflict in the North, along with updates from other sectors. The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) continues to grow, with 3,500 newly displaced people adding to their ranks over the last several weeks around Talhandak, in the Kidal region.

Articles in New England Journal of Medicine Focus on Need to Safeguard Health in Conflict

Friday, March 22, 2013
Two Perspective articles in the March 21 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine focus on the need to safeguard health in conflict situations. In Security of Health Care and Global Health, Robin Coupland shares her views on threats to health care during conflicts. These threats are “not just an issue for humanitarian aid agencies,” she argues.

Health System Severely Disrupted by Syrian Crisis

Tuesday, March 19, 2013
As the Syrian crisis passes the two-year mark, refugees number over one million, 70,000 people have died and 350,000 have been injured, and the health system is severely disrupted. On March 15 the World Health Organization Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean issued a situation report describing the effects of the crisis on health in the region.

Nine Polio Workers Dead in Nigeria: How Can We Move beyond Condemnation to Actions that Protect Health Workers?

Friday, February 8, 2013
First Pakistan, now Nigeria. Polio workers murdered on the job. Between December and January, at least 16 polio workers were killed in Pakistan, according to Reuters—and today, nine female health workers were slain in northern Nigeria, also while working on a polio eradication campaign. In the mountainous countryside of Pakistan, health workers often walk long distances to reach the population they serve.

As Conflict Ends in Mali, Health Sector to Begin Slow Recovery

Tuesday, February 5, 2013
French and Malian flags are flying throughout the capital city of Bamako today after French troops helped to liberate northern Mali from the radical Islamists who have occupied the region for almost a year. On Sunday, January 27, French and African troops took back the city of Gao, where jihadists used the Gao School of Nursing—once a thriving educational institution—as a base of operations. The next day, the troops liberated the ancient desert city of Timbuktu.

One Third of Syrian Hospitals Shut, Medical Supplies Run Low

Thursday, January 24, 2013
LONDON (AlertNet) - More than half Syria's 88 hospitals have been damaged in the country's bitter civil war, and nearly one third are out of service, making it difficult for people to get medical care, Syrian and U.N. health officials have reported. December data from Syria's health ministry, released by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday, shows that 48 hospitals have been damaged, of which 27 are no longer operating. Syria's 1,919 public health centres have been less severely affected - around 10 percent are damaged and 6 percent closed.

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