“Red Crescenters” in Al Yarmouk Refugee Camp Fight to Save Lives Under a Hail of Bullets

(Al Yarmouk refugee camp, April 8th 2015): For the eighth consecutive day, PRCS teams in Al Yarmouk camp for Palestinian refugees in Damascus toiled to save lives despite limited means and harsh conditions. Working under a hail of bullets, shells and explosive barrels in the camp’s alleys as well as at PRCS’ Palestine hospital, they continued to provide relief and emergency services to refugees. Outside the besieged camp, PRCS’ personnel assisted displaced populations, namely in Damascus, transporting sick and wounded patients to the Society’s Jaffa Hospital.

“Conditions severely deteriorated when ISIS entered the camp at the beginning of the month, with clashes eruptingin the immediate vicinity of Palestine hospital”, Dr. Shaker Al Shihabi, PRCS’ Executive Office member and Head of its branch in Syria, said.

“It has become very dangerous for us to work even inside the hospital. Just one day after Yihya Al Horani, a staff member, was killed, five PRCS’ volunteers were injured when a shell hit the hospital. That same day, we managed to deliver twenty five First Aid kits as well as medicine and medical supplies to PRCS’ volunteers inside the camp, while our ambulances team stationed near the frontlines in order to transport the wounded to hospitals in Damascus.

PRCS’ continues to provide medical services to the wounded thanks to its ambulances and emergency medical technicians stationed near the frontlines around the clock”, he added. Moreover, PRCS’ teams regularly visit displaced populations in Al Zahira shelter, offering them assistance and humanitarian services, while a team of volunteers was set up to evacuate the dead bodies from the camp’s streets and to ensure their proper burial. Very difficult conditions currently prevail in Al Yarmouk due to continuous clashes which hinder the provision of medical supplies and services to displaced refugees, especially in southern areas.

PRCS has condemned the targeting of volunteers and medical facilities in Al Yarmouk, and called for the respect of the neutrality of medical teams and civilians and for facilitating the work of its staff and volunteers.

The Society has made exceptional efforts since the beginning of the Syrian crisis to provide assistance to refugees not only in Syria, but also to displaced populations who have taken refuge in Lebanon.

PRCS’ Palestine Hospital in Al Yarmouk continues to assist the victims of these sad events, despite the damage it has sustained, the killing of eight of its medical personnel and the wounding of tens of others.

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