Earthquake in Nicaragua Our first mission in a disaster.

Hurricane in Honduras Our first mission of long-term medical assistance.

Cambodians flee Khmer Rouge We provided medical care in our first large-scale intervention in a refugee crisis.

War in Lebanon Our teams conduct surgery in the organisation's first major intervention in a war zone.

Refugee assistance Launch of various refugee programmes in Thailand, in the Ogaden region (Djibouti, war between Ethiopia and Somalia) and Eritrean refugees in Sudan.

Influx of Cambodian refugees into Thailand Médecins Sans Frontières sends 100 volunteers to assist.

Soviet Union invades Afghanistan We ran clandestine cross-border operations to provide medical care for civilians.
First international appeal The “walk for survival of Cambodia”, in protest against the Vietnamese authorities stopping our teams from bringing aid to Cambodia.
First nutritional programme In the Karamoja province of Uganda, in the midst of drought and civil war.
Also 40 Médecins Sans Frontières volunteers in Somalia’s refugee camps. First Médecins Sans Frontières volunteers in Afghanistan. Started working in Iranian Kurdistan. Start of the relief mission for Salvadoran refugees in Honduras.

Afghanistan Bombardments of Médecins Sans Frontières hospitals.

Ethiopia Launch of major nutritional programme.

Ethiopia Expelled from the country after denouncing the hijacking of humanitarian aid and the forced transfers of populations by the government.
Conflict in Central America Provided medical care in Honduras to refugees from El Salvador and Nicaragua.

Civil war in Sri Lanka organised mobile clinics and hospital programs to treat injured and traumatised citizens.
Yemen Intervention in Aden where fighting rages between rival factions of the ruling party.

Earthquake in Armenia Provided medical care in the Soviet Union.
Iraq attacks Kurds We were the first medical organisation that bears witness to the use of chemical weapons on the Kurdish town of Halabja.
Withdrawl from Sudan After an Aviation Sans Frontières plane is shot down by a missile, killing 4 people, two of them Médecins Sans Frontières volunteers.

Soviet Bloc Falls Médecins Sans Frontières began programs in response to deteriorating health systems.

Civil war in Liberia Our teams provided emergency care at the height of the fighting.
Afghanistan An Médecins Sans Frontières logistician is murdered. Activities suspended.

Emergency in Somalia Médecins Sans Frontières represents the only foreign presence in war-stricken Mogadishu, and aids refugees in other countries.

Emergency in Kurdistan Largest emergency relief operation to date. Médecins Sans Frontières provided care in Turkey, Iran and Jordan to Kurds displaced by the Gulf War.
Former Yugoslavia The Médecins Sans Frontières relief convoy evacuating the wounded from Vukovar hospital comes under attack. Three of our workers were wounded.

Bosnia Médecins Sans Frontières denounces ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
Emergency in the Horn of Africa One hundred Médecins Sans Frontières volunteers work in the region affected by war, drought and displacement of population.

Civil war in Burundi A failed coup d’état in October resulted in 750,000 refugees fleeing to neighbouring Rwanda, Tanzania and Zaire. Médecins Sans Frontières deployed 85 volunteers in the region but delays in the international relief effort cause widespread famine in the refugee camps.

War in Bosnia Medical programs in the region extend to the UN's supposed "protection zones" of Gorazde and Srebrenica.

Médecins Sans Frontières Australia established.

Genocide in Rwanda Médecins Sans Frontières remained in Kigali throughout the genocide of more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutu's. We made an unprecedented decision to call for military intervention. One million Rwandan refugees arrived in the small town of Goma, Zaire. Within days, we collaborated on the biggest cholera programme to date.

Srebrenica Massacre Our team witnessed the fall of the UN "protected zone", and denounced the subsequent massacre of up to 10,000 civilians by Serbian troops.
War in Chechnya Médecins Sans Frontières brought aid to civilians inside the republic and in refugee camps in neighbouring countries.

Meningitis in Nigeria Médecins Sans Frontières launched a massive vaccination [ 4.5 million people] and treatment program

Rwandan refugees seek aid Médecins Sans Frontières assisted refugees forced out of camps in Zaire as they return home, but was blocked from assisting those fleeing further into Zaire, who fall victim to widespread massacres.

Street children neglected in madagascar, Brazil and the Philippines Medical and social programs for vulnerable and maginalised youth were expanded.

Rwandan refugees crisis continues Médecins Sans Frontières fought for access to Rwandan refugees, many of whom were massacred and died of starvation and disease.

Women denied care in Afghanistan Médecins Sans Frontières fought for access to health care for women living under the Taliban regime.
Famine in South Sudan Médecins Sans Frontières responded to widespread famine caused by civil war and drought.
Hurricane Mitch We assisted victims in Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvadore.

Civil war in Republic of Congo Médecins Sans Frontières integrated treatment for survivors of rape and sexual assault into our emergency response.
Famine in North Korea Unable to ensure that medical aid was reaching the most vulnerable, we ended our programs after three years, but continued to assist refufgees fleeing to China.

Launch of Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines With millions dying each year from treatable infectious diseases, Médecins Sans Frontières started an international effort to push for increased access to medecins for the world's poor.

Crisis in Kosovo During NATO bombing of Serbia, we provided humanitarian assistance to refugees in Macedonia, Albania and Montenegro.
Second war in Chechnya Médecins Sans Frontières called for access to Grozny and denounces the massive use of violence by Russian forces against civilians.
Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize Médecins Sans Frontières was honored for its "pioneering humanitarian work on several continents."

Civil War in Sierra Leone Médecins Sans Frontières treated victims of the country’s brutal civil war.

Asylum seekers flee to Europe Médecins Sans Frontières expanded programs assisting asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants in France, Italy, Spain and Belgium.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic Médecins Sans Frontières started providing antiretroviral therapy to people living with AIDS in seven countries.
Trauma in Palestinian Territories, Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Colombia, and Beyond Médecins Sans Frontières expanded mental health programs around the world.

Aid Workers targeted Médecins Sans Frontières worker Arjan Erkel was abducted in the North Caucacus, a victim of increasing dangers faced by aid workers in conflict zones worldwide.
Famine in Angola Médecins Sans Frontières ran the largest operation in our history, with 200 international volunteers and more than 2,000 local staff working throughout the country.
US-led Coalition invades Afghanistan With many International staff evacuated, our programs continued to operate throughout the conflict led by Afghan staff.

Malaria killing millions in Africa Faced with skyrocketing resistance to common antimalarials like chloroquine, Médecins Sans Frontières increased its use of artemisin-based combination therapy, and pushed for wider availability of this effective treatment.

US invades Iraq Médecins Sans Frontières teams remained in Baghdad during the war and challenged the US government on its failure to provide adequate medical care to civilians.

Heavy fighting in the Liberian Capital Médecins Sans Frontières remained in Monrovia to treat victims during fierce fighting between government and rebel groups.
The Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) created Médecins Sans Frontières is a founding partner in this new organisation dedicated to developing medicines for neglected Diseases.
Civilians suffer in Democratic Republic of Congo Médecins Sans Frontières runs dozens of medical programs for people caught in the region’s chronic conflict.

Emergency in Western Darfur Médecins Sans Frontières runs feeding centres, clinics and vaccination campaigns in western Sudan and Chad, where hundreds of thousands of people fleeing violence face starvation.
Afghanistan withdrawl Médecins Sans Frontières pulls out completely following the killing of five of its workers and the continuing threat to its teams by the Taliban.
10 year anniversary Médecins Sans Frontières celebrates 10 years in Australia.