WUNRN
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/13/middleeast/syria-yarmouk-front-line/
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/25/opinions/msf-yarmouk/
SYRIA – YARMOUK PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP IN SYRIA – WASTELAND OF SUFFERING – STARVATION, SICKNESS – WOMEN & CHILDREN
Yarmouk Refugee Camp in Syria – Women, men, children, waiting for aid. Photo UNRWA
By Jehan Bseiso – August 25, 2015 - Jehan
Bseiso is an adviser on humanitarian issues withMédecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders).
(CNN)The
recently reported typhoid outbreak in Yarmouk is just the "tip of the iceberg" of a worsening
health situation inside the Palestinian camp, said the UNRWA.
Five
years into the Syrian war, the reality is, Yarmouk only scratches the surface
of the anguish faced by the entire country. The struggle for survival inside
this camp in the southern part of the capital of Damascus echoes throughout
other besieged areas in Syria, encircled by either the Syrian government or
armed opposition forces, where the trickle of assistance does not address the
needs of trapped communities.
In
Yarmouk, but also in North Homs, East Ghouta and elsewhere, the shortage of
water, food and medical care is chronic. East Ghouta, for example, is the most
populated area in Syria, with almost one million people.The residents have been
suffering from sustained bombardment and warfare without central electricity
and water provision for almost three years.
Using
basic hand pumps, people draw water from improvised wells that are often mixed
with sewage and need to be treated. In this green agricultural belt close to
Damascus, previously renowned for its harvest, sewage water is usually the only
option to irrigate fruits and vegetables, leading to water and food borne
diseases when these are eaten uncooked or when washed in unclean water.
To
generate electricity and fuel, residents have resorted to creative solutions
such as using water turbines, digging gas pits where animal dung and
vegetable remains are turned into methane gas and burning plastic to extract fuel products.
Ever-present violence and
warfare
This
is an extraordinary situation, where violence and warfare are ever-present
threats. MSF supports 48 health facilities in besieged areas with medicine and
consumables. All these field hospitals run on generators and clean water is
simply not available. And all have been bombed, or nearly bombed, on multiple
occasions.
In
the hot summer months, medical staff in these facilities report an increasing
number of patients with contaminated water related diseases such as typhoid and
hepatitis A, and intestinal infections such as dysentery and amoebiosis.
For a
trapped population with increasing health needs, the shortages in drugs and
gaps in the provision of medical care are continuous. Thousands of doctors,nurses, dentists, pharmacists and
paramedics have been killed, or have fled to neighboring countries, leaving a
massive gap in expertise and experience. Daily life is a serious struggle and
medical activities are holding on by the slenderest of threads.
Overall,
MSF is providing regular support to more than 100 medical facilities in Syria,
with a focus on the most affected communities and active conflict areas where
there is little or no other medical support being provided.
Only
an end to the siege will address this mounting crisis. In the absence of the
large scale international humanitarian support required in Syria, networks of
medical doctors and civilian activists are the ones providing a lifeline of
assistance to their communities. These networks can and should be supported in
whatever way possible.
In the words of a Syrian doctor who MSF supports: "Every moment of every day I feel I have had enough, but we have no other choice. People here need us. They are in desperate need of all kinds of medical care, from the most simple to the most complicated. We cannot add another reason for the deterioration of this already disastrous situation ."