Red Cross suspends operations due to chaos in Baghdad

Deutsche World ^ | April 9, 2003 | N/A

[blam]

Red Cross suspends delivery of aid after attacks

By Cahal Milmo
10 April 2003
Independent (UK)

The Red Cross, the last international aid agency working inside Baghdad, suspended its operations after one of its workers was critically wounded in an attack on a convoy attempting to resupply the city's hospitals.

As American troops rolled into the Iraqi capital, the International Committee of the Red Cross said the "extremely dangerous" situation in the city meant it could no longer deliver supplies to medical facilities which have been without water or electricity for three days.

A spokesman for the organisation said: "Our team has not been able move about Baghdad for the last 12 hours. Given the chaotic and totally unpredictable situation in the city, getting from one place to another involves incalculable risks."

The decision was taken after two vehicles carrying large Red Cross flags, which were attempting to reach one of Baghdad's main hospitals, came under fire on Tuesday.

A member of staff, Vatche Arslanian, 48, a Canadian logistics expert, was seriously wounded and had to be abandoned after colleagues trying to rescue him were forced back by gunfire.

Mr Arslanian, who had been part of a team delivering emergency supplies to hospitals and water treatment works, was last night officially listed as missing feared dead. The ICRC said it was not known whether the convoy had been deliberately attacked or had been caught up in crossfire between American and Iraqi forces.

Aid workers in the city said the fighting meant that civilians had been left injured and dying in the open because rescuers were being fired upon as they tried to help any wounded.

Roland Huguenin-Benjamin, part of the Red Cross team in Baghdad, said: "Casualties have been seen on the roads, on some bridges and there was no immediate possibility of evacuating them, for the reason that there was immediate fire as soon as anybody was trying to approach. The problem is the lack of respect for ambulances and respect for casualties – to give allow a minimum of security for people to be evacuated."

The suspension of the ICRC deliveries will cut off the sole source of fresh supplies of medicines and equipment to Baghdad's four main emergency hospitals.

[BlackVeil]

Thanks for the article, informative.

will cut off the sole source of fresh supplies of medicines and equipment to Baghdad's four main emergency hospitals

I hope that will change soon - within the next 12 hours. Apparently, many hospitals are out of pain killers and basic drugs. Prayers for the sick, and those caring for them.

[blam]

Doctors stay at home to keep looters away

By Tini Tran, AP, in Basra
10 April 2003

Only 50 of 150 doctors at Basra Teaching Hospital showed up for work yesterday – the others stayed at home to protect their families from looters.

The hospital, one of three in the city, is struggling to cope with the flood of war casualties, and British forces are being blamed for the human toll of the war as well as the chaos in the streets.

"We thought when they entered the city, they would prepare an administration to take control," said Dr Janan Peter al-Sabah, the hospital's chief of surgery. "We don't need food or water. What we lack is safety and protection. Our message to the coalition troops is to take responsibility for the security of the people, of the homes, of the facilities."

Basra was calm yesterday, after the civil disorder that broke out on Monday when British forces moved in to the city. Gunmen had stormed the hospital and left with a car and some medical equipment. In response, British soldiers are guarding the buildings and snipers have been placed on rooftops, but doctors say it's not enough.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

***Years ago I suspended my donations due to chaos in the Red Cross.***

My mom told a story of the Red Cross in WWII.
Every one in her town donated to the Red Cross, volunteered time for them and lived their lives around them as many people had sons in the war zones of the world.
One day a soldier wrote home telling them to stop supporting the R. C. Everyone in his outfit was upset because during the winter of 1945 on the battle lines the Red Cross came to the front with hot coffee and doughnuts---for the officers ONLY.

During my time in the military(1966-69) I met several people who had no use for the red cross. However, when we lost our home during the Tulsa Flood of 1976 the Red Cross did help us get new living quarters and gave us a matress and box springs.

[Dec31,1999]

I stopped donating to the Red Cross after the 9/11 fiasco, where they promided that all funds donated would go to the victims, but then they changed their minds and decided to put much of the money into the "general funds". Remember that?

[ImphClinton]

Not only that she indicated nearly all the patients were military member injuried while trying to kill Americans. Although she had seen some women and children.

This report was so baised I nearly puked. They kept trying to get her to say we were causing the problems. She finally said a few people were hurt by bad water.

[Spirited]

The RC is not trustworthy. I have heard of them charging servicemen for coffee, when they receive donations for doing it.

[ImphClinton]

The Iraquis have been converting Ambulances into Gun vehicals attaching 50 Calibur machine guns and even artillary to them.

They have no honor. It even turns out that they shot at the Palastine Hotel in order to blame it on us. There have been weapons found in hundreads of schools.

There is still much fighting in Bagdad. The celebrating is in the large poor part of town. The more affluent part of town is where the Baath Party housed most of its members and those parts of town are not yet under control.

It will take a while to get things under control. Hopefully by then most of the Baath Party members will have either been KIA or Murdered by those they used to opress. What goes around comes around. Many of these Baath party members are war criminals. It is much cheeper if the people kill them than if we try them.

[ImphClinton]

I heard the officer story a little different. I heard that in WW2 they charged the enlisted for coffe and doughnuts while giving it to the officers. Later in a 1950's Hurricane they charged 25 cents for a doughnut and cup of coffe. This was when it only cons a nickle anywhere else. No free refils either.

I never in my life have doughnated to them and never will. Not even my blood.

[happygrl]

while some US soldiers were tearing down statues in some parts of the city others were basically shooting at everything ... but its believable that there is quite a bit of indiscriminate firing going on

Oh, it is ? Really ?

You can believe that our soldiers are not taught to indiscriminately fire at anything.

If you believe this, you know nothing about the "rules of engagement" that our soldiers are taught.

[Spirited]

I think there is more than sufficient reason to distrust that outfit.

[Poohbah]

3 journalists dead in the last day or two?

Amazing what happens when you stand next to Iraqi machine-gun nests.

Niven's First Law: Never throw s**t at an armed person.

Niven's Second Law: Never stand NEXT to anyone throwing s**t at an armed person.

[Poohbah]

in a hotel full of journalists.

Let me explain something to you.

When somebody is shooting at me, I don't give a damn if he's shooting from a hotel full of journalists, or even from behind a herd of baby harp seals, I am going to shoot back.

[Poohbah]

in a hotel full of journalists that didn't see anyone shooting

WTF, were the reporters all kin to Hans Blix?

The video from Al-Jazeera is quite telling. You can see spent fifty-caliber machine cartridges flying through the air behind the reporter.

That means that someone RIGHT BEHIND THE REPORTER was shooting at the Americans.

[annieokie]

The Red Cross is simply afraid they will have to put the $$$$$$$millions where their mouth is. They still have $$$millions left over from 9/11 and now on TV begging for more for this war. I will NEVER give to the Red Cross.

[Poohbah]

much more than an al-jazeera journalist has died.

Oh? Name names.

The journalists that died were all immediately adjacent to the machine gun nest. Niven's Second Law applies.

BTW, are you really Baghdad Bob?