Syria: Hospital Struck in Aleppo as U.N. Chief Decries “War Crimes”
In Syria, government forces and their allies advanced on Aleppo after a pair of barrel bombs hit the main hospital, knocking it out of commission and shutting off essential healthcare to most of East Aleppo’s 250,000 residents. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called the attacks on medical facilities war crimes. The violence came as residents described Aleppo as a living hell, with water, fuel, medicine and electricity all in short supply. Elsewhere in Syria, an airstrike in Idlib on Thursday flattened an apartment building, where a video posted online purports to show rescue workers with the “White Helmets” volunteers digging an infant out of the rubble.
Syrian Civil Defense worker: “We have been working for two or three hours. Thank God we found her alive. She is lucky she is still alive. One month old, the baby is just one month old. Two hours of work, that is it. She is 30 days old.”
Meanwhile, Russia warned the United States not to oppose its military campaign in support of Bashar al-Assad’s forces, warning that a U.S. intervention could lead to “frightening tectonic shifts in the Middle East.”
TOPICS:
MSF Marks First Anniversary of Deadly Kunduz Hospital Bombing
Doctors Without Borders marked the first anniversary Monday of the U.S. military’s bombing of its hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, on October 3, 2015. The attack killed 42 people, including patients and staff. Doctors Without Borders has described patients burning in their beds, medical staff who were decapitated and lost limbs, and staff members shot from the air while they fled the burning building. The Pentagon has called the attack a “mistake.” Sixteen U.S. officers have received administrative discipline over the attack, but none have faced criminal charges. This is Doctors Without Borders Switzerland President Thomas Nierle.
Dr. Thomas Nierle: “Four out of five members of the Security Council, permanent members of the Security Council, are allied to forces who commit these crimes. And on the other hand, on the U.N. Security Council, there’s—one resolution after the other is passed that healthcare structures should not be attacked, that they are protected, that it should be respected, but in the end, nothing changes.”
The bombing of the hospital one year ago came after Taliban forces took control of the city of Kunduz. U.S.-backed Afghan forces later retook control of the city. But on Monday, the Taliban again launched an offensive in Kunduz. Fighting for control of the city continues today. The U.S. war in Afghanistan is the longest war in U.S. history.
Eslkevin's Blog 