Somalia: MSF Treats More Than 90 War Wounded After 5 Days of Fighting

More than 90 people injured in renewed fighting in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu have been received in recent days by Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams at a hospital near the city.

Some 91 war wounded who came from residential areas of Mogadishu to Daynile Hospital, on the outskirts of the capital, arrived with blast or gunshot wounds between May 8-11.

Thirty-eight were women and children under the age of 14, showing the high toll of attacks on vulnerable civilians.

Over the past few weeks, people had started returning to the city, but with the increase in violence on the streets, thousands turned back to find refuge in camps for the displaced near Mogadishu. MSF provides water and distributes relief supplies in the camps.

Last year, the 60-bed MSF hospital in Daynile treated 5,250 people suffering from traumatic injuries. Some 3,093 had war-related wounds. More than half of the patients were women and children under 14 years of age. MSF distributed more than 10 millions liters of water, including jerry cans and plastic sheeting to people at four camps in Daynile district.

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