Somalia: Treating war wounded in Mogadishu

Five days of fighting in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu. Médecins Sans Frontières treats 91 war wounded.

After a relative lull of two months in fighting in Somalia’s capital, violence has erupted once again in the streets of Mogadishu.

In the past four days (May 8 to May 11), Médecins Sans Frontières teams in Daynile Hospital on the outskirts of Mogadishu, received 91 war wounded who came from the residential areas. All the injuries were the result of blast or gunshot wounds. Of these patients, 38 were women and children under the age of 14, reflecting that civilians pay the high price of war.
 
Over the past few weeks, people had started returning to the city, but with an upsurge of violence on the streets, thousands turned back to find refuge in the displaced camps, which are located on the outskirts of Mogadishu where Médecins Sans Frontières provides water and distributes relief supplies.

Last year, the 60-bed Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in Daynile treated 5,250 people suffering from traumatic injuries. There were 3,093 who had war-related wounds. More than half of the patients were women and children under 14 years of age. Médecins Sans Frontières distributed over 10 million litres of water, including jerry cans and plastic sheeting to people living in four displaced camps in Daynile district.

Médecins Sans Frontières has been working in Somalia since 1991.  It calls on all parties to the conflict to respect the safety and security of civilians.

Image credit (homepage): © Otavio Omati/MSF

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