The boys who died waiting for approval for emergency medical care are just two examples of many cases featured in a new report by Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) on Al-Hol camp in north-east Syria.
The report, Between Two Fires: Danger and Desperation in Syria’s Al-Hol camp, details cruelty in the camp and the long-term detainment of over 50,000 people, mostly children.
In February 2021, a seven-year-old boy was rushed to MSF’s clinic in Al-Hol with second-degree burns across his face and arms. Lifesaving medical care was no more than an hour's drive away, yet it took two days for his transfer to be approved by camp authorities. He died on the way to the hospital under armed guard, separated from his mother, in agony.
Three months later, a five-year-old boy was hit by a truck and rushed to the same small clinic. MSF staff recommended he be referred to the hospital for emergency surgery. Despite the urgency, it took hours for his transfer to be approved. He died en route to the hospital, unconscious and alone.
Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) are an international, medical humanitarian organisation working in more than 70 countries around the world.