RUKBAN CAMP, Syria (North Press) – Omar Kadim, like other IDPs living in Rukban camp, located on the Syrian-Jordanian border, cannot buy medicine, even if they are in dire need, because of the siege imposed on the camp by Syrian government forces.
Kadim, an internally displaced person (IDP) from the city of Palmyra, central Syria, has been living in Rukban camp for eight years. He told North Press that there are no job opportunities for young men in the camp, and even if there are, the wages are too low to cover the camp expenses.
There are no job opportunities for young people inside the camp, even if some of them were able to find one it will be for low wages.
A worker cannot provide 40 percent of his family’s necessities, so buying food takes priority over buying medicine.
Rukban camp is situated within the 55-kilometre “de-confliction zone” east of Homs Governorate nearby the Syrian eastern border with Jordan and Iraq. It was established in 2014 to house IDPs from the eastern governorate of Homs and the city of Palmyra who fled battles between several forces and the Islamic State (ISIS).
People in Rukban camp, around 8,000, have suffered from a severe embargo since 2018. The government forces prevented international organizations from accessing the camp under the pretext of lack of security.
Since 2014, it has not been included in the United Nations lists of IDPs, despite successive calls and appeals made through social media.
For years, the camp residents have been suffering from dire health conditions, many diseases have spread, some of which are unknown and cannot be treated as they cannot find a suitable medicine, in addition to the lack of medicines or equipment.
Bassem Ghazal, 55, a displaced doctor from Damascus, who resides in Rukban, points to the severe weakness in the health sector, especially the lack of medical equipment in the camp and the lack of quality medicines, especially for those with chronic diseases.
Ghazal works in the only laboratory in the camp, but he struggles with the absence of analysis equipment and the shortage of medical supplies. He holds humanitarian organizations responsible for providing adequate healthcare services in the camp and calls for their support in providing essential medical equipment and medicines.
In her turn, Anaam Hadros, director of Sham Hospital in Rukban camp and an IDP from the town of Mheen, in Homs, attributed the poor health sector in the camp to the siege imposed by the government forces.
She told North Press that the government blockade led to the spread of many diseases due to the lack of many medicines and the difficulty in obtaining medical devices, as they are not allowed to be brought to the camp.
Hadros pointed out that many children suffer from immunodeficiency, “because they have not received the necessary vaccinations for five years.”
Vaccines must be provided to the children of the camp as soon as possible, with the need for all medical supplies to arrive, she stressed.