Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Hospitals not safe
Security
(IRIN) Iraqi troops, US-led coalition forces and insurgents are all guilty of breaking Geneva conventions that govern the neutrality of hospitals, say health specialists. The increasing risk of being shot or arrested in a hospital in Iraq is preventing ordinary citizens from seeking medical attention.
"The Geneva convention states that a hospital is and should remain neutral and accessible to everybody, particularly civilians. Yet, when it's occupied by armed groups or official forces, people would not have this free and humanitarian access," said Cedric Turlan, information officer for the NGO Coordinating Committee in Iraq (NCCI). Turlan said that hospitals are getting caught in the midst of violent clashes between insurgents and US or Iraqi troops, and between Sunni and Shia militias. In the course of these battles, ambulances are sometimes destroyed or confiscated and entire hospitals, particularly in the restive Anbar province, are taken over by a particular armed group - whether official or non-official.
The Geneva convention states that a hospital is and should remain neutral and accessible to everybody, particularly civilians. This is deterring patients from seeking medical help in hospitals and is making the provision of health care an almost impossible task, say specialists.
The Geneva convention states that a hospital is and should remain neutral and accessible to everybody, particularly civilians. This is deterring patients from seeking medical help in hospitals and is making the provision of health care an almost impossible task, say specialists.
Labels: hospitals
