Thursday, August 11, 2011
Sri Lanka Hospital Attack May 11, 2009 (AP Photo)
It’s been open season on doctors and nurses in recent years, according to the International Red Cross, which has issued alarming numbers on attacks, some intentional, targeting medical professionals in war zones.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says there were 600 attacks across the globe on doctors, nurses, ambulances and hospitals from mid-2008 to the end of 2010. The assaults took place in 16 nations, including Libya, Afghanistan, Somalia and Colombia.
While some shootings and bombings were accidental, many deliberately targeted healthcare workers, says the ICRC. And the outrage over such incidents isn’t what it used to be, they add.
“A few years ago, when an ambulance was shelled, or a hospital was taken by armed people, or doctors were arrested, there was an outcry,” said ICRC’s director-general Yves Daccord. “But now nobody—people, governments, armed groups—seems to be interested anymore.”
Examples cited by Red Cross officials include hospitals being shelled in Sri Lanka and Somalia, and ambulance shootings in Libya and Lebanon.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Red Cross: Rise in Violence against Medics in Warzones (by Imogen Foulkes, BBC News)
Report: Health Care in Danger: Making the Case (ICRC) (pdf)
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