Government siege to close hospital in Aleppo countryside
ALEPPO, Syria (North Press) – Ongoing siege imposed by Syrian government forces on areas where camps housing IDPs of Afrin deploy in Aleppo northern countryside threats a hospital to stop working alike other service institutions in the region.
Fourth Division of the government forces has been banning the entry of oil and logistics to areas in the northern countryside of Aleppo since early November, causing schools to close and increasing sufferings of more than 200.000 IDPs.
On Wednesday, manager of Avrin Hospital in the village of Fafin in Aleppo northern countryside, Azad Rasho, said the hospital “is threatened to completely stop working due to the government siege on the region, putting life of some patients at risk.”
Rasho told North Press both Avrin and Tel Rifaat hospitals witness severe lack in medications and oxygen cylinders, noting that as they are almost running low on diesel, Avrin Hospital will completely stop.
The northern countryside of Aleppo, also known as Shahba region, houses IDPs of the Kurdish city of Afrin which was occupied in 2018 by Turkey following a military operation called “Olive Branch” to push away the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) under the pretext of protecting Turkey’s “national security.”
The operation caused the displacement of about 300.000 of the original inhabitants of the Kurds of Afrin who have been taking shelter in 40 villages and five camps in Shahba region since then.
There are about 16.000 displaced families from Afrin distributed over 42 villages and towns in Shahba region, in addition to 1.870 families, comprising 7.500 individuals, now living in the camps of Barkhodan, Sardam, Afrin, al-Awda, and Shahba, according to the Social Affairs and Labor Board of the Afrin region, currently operating in Aleppo northern countryside.
The area has been militarily protected by Russian and Syrian government forces since 2018.
Rasho added that patients were evacuated from the hospital and some were sent to the city of Aleppo through smuggling routes.
He went further saying that all due surgeries have been suspended, stressing that the delay in some operations may endangers lives of some patients.