Infant dies in Syria’s Rukban camp due to lack of treatment
DARAA, Syria (North Press) – A nine-month-old female baby, Yaqin, died on Sunday, as all attempts failed to send her out for treatment in the nearest country, Jordan, in light of the siege imposed by Syrian government forces on Rukban camp, on Syrian-Jordanian border.
Yaqin was suffering from several birth defects, including a cleft palate, tongue-tie, hypoxia and respiratory problems, preventing her from breastfeeding and food since her birth.
The Rukban camp was established in 2014, and it houses more than 12.000 displaced people (IDPs), most of them came from the countryside of Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, Homs and Hama Governorates.
Since 2018, the camp has been suffering from a severe siege by the Syrian government forces, following the closure of the Jordanian border.
The camp is run by Syrian opposition factions, supported by the US-led Global Coalition, and is located in al-Tanf area. The area is located east of Homs Governorate, south Syria, and is a home for a strategic military base of the Coalition, as the region extends on a territory that has common borders with both Iraq and Jordon.
Two months ago, activists on social media circulated the infant’s story, stressing that she needs to be taken out for treatment, but without any response from the Syrian or Jordanian governments.