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Category: NGOs

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: We are in a safe place, for now

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    On Friday, the 27th of September, we heard and felt a huge series of blasts while we were in meetings at the office. We wrapped up work and got stuck in heavy traffic. I had just relocated to a safer place since the bombing around Beirut and across the country intensified on Monday. When I reached my new home around 10 p.m., my relatives had already joined us – leaving their homes, thinking it would be safer where we were.

    From my balcony, I saw dozens and dozens of people walking in the streets carrying what they could, plastic bags, backpacks, or nothing. People in the southern suburbs around ours had received evacuation orders from the Israeli armed forces. We saw people fleeing on foot, some walking with sticks, young and elderly. Some people were in cars. We were not in the neighborhood that was targeted but we heard drones and planes. We felt them close by. Suddenly, there was darkness all around and bombing started everywhere. There was heavy smoke and people in the streets were coughing. I was with my mum, brother and sister, and trying to figure out what to do next. Are the roads safe? Where do we go?

    I had just left my house in Dahieh—the southern suburb of Beirut—a few days ago because of the heavy bombardments and moved to this one’s. We thought we would be safer here. Now we had to leave again. I grabbed a bag of essential items I had at hand. We were told that it’s better to bring mattresses, so we stuffed two in our car and took a pack of water bottles. I didn’t know what to do. There were fires everywhere following the airstrikes, and I heard a huge blast. We heard, felt and saw the strikes. Our building was shaking. There was a huge blast in a place with no advance warning for evacuation.

    Surrounded by fire and smoke, I was repeating to myself, “all we need is a plan and to take action, a plan and take action; do not wait here.” We just left the place as fast as we could. I don’t know what happened to my own house, or the new house. We kept calling around and drove for a couple of hours before we figured out where to go. Around 5 a.m, we found a place on the other side of the mountains.

    We were very lucky that we left when we did because the fires after the airstrikes were still raging where we had been. We just needed a place to rest a little, to see where to go next, and we still haven’t slept. Some people are still in cars. Now we’re watching the news and shocking footage of what is happening. I know that my colleagues, MSF teams, are in the field, supplying water by trucks to shelters and schools in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, where displaced families are staying. Some people are lying down on the sidewalks. MSF managed to provide 86,000 liters of water in 24 hours, and is also distributing kits containing basic hygiene and relief items, as well as mattresses to the displaced people. Our mental health teams are on the streets providing psychological first aid to people who are traumatized and to people seeking refuge in schools. I am used to being a humanitarian worker, but now I am also a person displaced by air strikes in my own country. We are in a safe place, for now.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: MSF has and continues to treat more than two victims of sexual violence per hour in DRC

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    • New data reveals that MSF teams treated more than two victims and survivors of sexual violence every hour in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during 2023.
    • The alarming numbers have continued, with teams having treated nearly 70 per cent of the numbers across all of 2023 in just the first five months of 2024.
    • MSF is calling on international and national stakeholders to invest in to address sexual violence.

    Amsterdam/Barcelona/Brussels/Geneva/Paris – In a new retrospective report, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reveals that – together with the Ministry of Health – we had treated an unprecedented number of victims and survivors of sexual violence in Democratic Republic of Congo in 2023. This upward trend has continued in the first months of 2024. MSF is calling on all national and international stakeholders to take urgent action to better prevent this crisis and improve care for survivors.

    In 2023, MSF teams in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) helped treat 25,166 victims and survivors of sexual violence across the country. That’s more than two every hour.

    This figure is by far the highest number ever recorded by MSF in DRC. It is based on data from 17 projects set up by MSF, in support of the Ministry of Health, in five Congolese provinces – North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Maniema and Central Kasai. In previous years (2020, 2021, 2022), our teams treated an average of 10,000 victims per year in the country. The year 2023 therefore marks a massive increase in admissions. 

    ‘We are calling for help’: Sexual violence in DRC pdf — 2.9 MB Download

    This trend accelerated in the first months of 2024. In North Kivu province alone, 17,363 victims and survivors were treated with MSF assistance between January and May. Not even halfway through the year, this already represented 69 per cent of the total number of victims treated in 2023 in the five provinces mentioned above.   

    Displaced women are the first victims

    Analysed and verified over several months, the 2023 data presented in the report, We are calling for help, show that 91 per cent of victims treated with MSF assistance in DRC were admitted in North Kivu province. Clashes between the M23 group, the Congolese army and their respective allies have been raging in the province since late 2021, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee.

    The vast majority of victims (17,829) were treated in displacement sites around Goma, North Kivu’s capital. The number of displacement sites continued to grow throughout 2023.  

    “According to the testimonies of patients, two-thirds of them were attacked at gunpoint,” says Christopher Mambula, head of MSF’s programmes in DRC. “These attacks took place on the sites themselves, but also in the surrounding area when women and girls – who accounted for 98 per cent of the victims treated by MSF in DRC in 2023 – went out to collect wood or water, or to work in the fields.”

    A view of a refugee camp in Goma, where thousands of people have been displaced due to ongoing fighting in North Kivu. 
    Marion Molinari/MSF

    While the massive presence of armed men in and around displacement sites explains this explosion in sexual violence, the inadequacy of the humanitarian response and the inhumane living conditions in these sites fuel the phenomenon. The lack of food, water and income-generating activities exacerbates the vulnerable situation of women and girls (1 in 10 victims treated by MSF in 2023 were minors), who are forced to go to neighbouring hills and fields where there are many armed men. The lack of sanitation and safe shelter for women and girls leaves them vulnerable to attack. Others are victims of sexual exploitation to support their families.

    “On paper, there seem to be many programmes to prevent and respond to the needs of victims of sexual violence,” says Christopher Mambula. “But on the ground in displacement sites, our teams struggle every day to refer victims who need help.”

    “The few programmes that do exist are always too short-lived and grossly under-resourced,” says Mambula. “Much more is needed to protect women and meet the urgent needs of victims.”

    Urgent calls for action

    Based on the needs expressed by the victims, and building on previous work to solve this long-standing problem in the country, the report lists some 20 urgent actions to be taken by the parties to the conflict, the Congolese authorities – national, provincial and local – as well as international donors and the humanitarian sector. For MSF, there are three main areas of urgent action.

    Firstly, we call on all parties to the conflict to ensure respect for international humanitarian law. In particular, we call for the absolute prohibition of acts of sexual violence, but also respect for the civilian nature of displacement sites. The protection of people caught up in the fighting must be a priority. The call to protect civilians from abuse is also addressed to those involved in humanitarian programmes.

    Second, MSF calls for the improvement of living conditions in sites for internally displaced people. Access must be improved to meet basic needs – food, water, income-generating activities – as well as improving safe and well-lit sanitation and shelter. These investments must also be accompanied by increased efforts to raise awareness of sexual violence. While humanitarian funding must be sufficiently flexible to respond to emerging and urgent needs, implementing partners must also demonstrate accountability in delivering interventions.

    A woman stands in front of the camps of Bulengo and Lushagala.
    MSF/Alexandre Marcou

    Finally, we call for specific investment in better medical, social, legal and psychological care for victims of sexual violence. This requires long-term funding to improve medical training, the supply of post-rape kits to care facilities, legal support, as well as the provision of shelters for survivors. Funding is also needed for awareness-raising activities to prevent stigmatisation or marginalisation of victims, which sometimes prevents them from seeking help. Given the high number of requests for abortion from victims, MSF is also calling for the adaptation of the national legal framework to guarantee access to comprehensive medical abortion care.

    Sexual violence is a major medical and humanitarian emergency in DRC. According to the latest Gender-Based Violence Area of Responsibility DRC informationhttps://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/republique-democratique-du-congo-bulletin-dinformation-du-gbv-aor-avril-juin-t2-2024-aout-2024, which compiles data from various humanitarian organisations offering gender-based violence care services in 12 provinces of DRC, 55,500 survivors of sexual violence received medical care in the second quarter of 2024.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: DRC President Felix Tshisekedi must be held accountable for human rights violations

    Source: Amnesty International –

    By Jean Mobert Senga, Amnesty International’s DRC researcher

    Speaking at the UN General Assembly on 25 September 2024, President Tshisekedi ignored the continuing deterioration of human rights under his own government. The international community must push him to change course.

    At the start of his first term in 2019, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Felix Tshisekedi promised to protect human rights — but his government appears to have embarked on a crusade against his own pledges.

    The DRC authorities’ response to the armed conflict and inter-communal violence that has ravaged the country for decades has failed to improve the security situation. In some cases, it has made it worse.

    While the international community must address serious human rights abuses by armed groups in eastern DRC, including Rwanda and other countries’ alleged support to some armed groups, it must also increase pressure on President Tshisekedi’s government to uphold human rights, tackle impunity, and address deep-rooted socioeconomic injustices.

    The DRC is enduring one of the most protracted humanitarian crises in the world. From east to west and from north to south, the civilian population faces daily threats of violence from a myriad of armed groups. Congolese soldiers and affiliated militia groups also continue to target civilians and commit horrendous crimes, often with impunity.

    A profound failure

    Internally displaced persons (IDPs), particularly women and girls, disproportionately bear the brunt of this conflict. IDP camps are rife with sexual violence, exacerbated by poor security conditions and insufficient humanitarian aid. The continued failure of the Tshisekedi administration to protect populations made vulnerable by these living conditions is inacceptable.

    The international community must hold the DRC government accountable not only for its failure to prevent and punish sexual violence and attacks against civilians, but also for its inaction in addressing the humanitarian catastrophe. Both the Congolese government and the international community must increase funding for the chronically underfunded humanitarian response to meet the urgent needs of affected populations, including shelter, food, healthcare and education.

    The international community must hold the DRC government accountable not only for its failure to prevent and punish sexual violence and attacks against civilians, but also for its inaction in addressing the humanitarian catastrophe.

    Jean Mobert Senga, DRC Researcher, Amnesty International

    A key contributing factor to the deteriorating human rights situation in the eastern DRC is the ongoing “State of Siege” imposed in North Kivu and Ituri since May 2021. This exceptional measure, which is akin to a state of emergency, has effectively militarized everyday life, concentrating all powers in the hands of military and police officials, including powers which should be those of civilian authorities. Tshisekedi’s government must urgently end the “State of Siege” and work towards a human rights-centred approach to restoring security.

    Meanwhile, a crackdown on dissent has swept the nation under the pretext of defending the country against enemies. Journalists, civil society activists, and political opponents have faced threats, arbitrary detention, and judicial harassment. By weaponizing the judiciary, the Tshisekedi administration has betrayed the hopes and aspirations of those who resisted the repression of their rights under the Kabila regime.

    Equally alarming is the government’s decision in March this year to reinstate the death penalty after more than two decades of hiatus. Military courts have since handed down more than a hundred death penalty sentences, heightening the risk of politically motivated executions.

    The recent tragedy at Makala prison in Kinshasa, where over 120 people died, hundreds were injured, and more than 200 women and girls were subjected to sexual violence, including gang rape, underscores the dire state of prison conditions in the DRC. President Tshisekedi must ensure that the courts conduct a transparent and prompt investigation and prosecute all responsible, including political and security officials who may have failed to prevent these horrific events. The international community must push for and assist in urgent criminal and penitentiary reforms to ensure such tragedies are never repeated.

    Despite repeated calls for justice, the government has so far largely failed to bring both Congolese and foreign perpetrators of crimes under international law to justice. Powerful actors continue to operate with impunity, deepening the cycle of violence. Efforts towards other forms of justice, including compensations and reparations, remain dismally inadequate. Victims and survivors are frustrated by the lack of transparency and the slow pace of these efforts, which often feel more symbolic than substantive.

    Despite repeated calls for justice, the government has so far largely failed to bring both Congolese and foreign perpetrators of crimes under international law to justice. Powerful actors continue to operate with impunity, deepening the cycle of violence.

    Jean Mobert

    It is not only armed conflict that poses an existential threat to thousands of people in the country. The DRC is a critical supplier of copper and cobalt, minerals that are essential to the global transition to renewable energy. However, as highlighted in Amnesty International’s 2023 report “Business as Usual?”, increased investments in the industrial mining sector have led to human rights abuses, including mass forced evictions and environmental pollution, leaving frontline communities in limbo. Toxic pollution and dangerous working conditions continue to plague artisanal miners, particularly in the cobalt-rich southern provinces.

    The international community cannot afford to ignore the grave human rights situation in the DRC any longer. President Tshisekedi’s allies — especially the United States, South Africa, Angola, Belgium, and France — must use their influence to demand accountability for human rights violations.

    This oped first ran in South Africa’s Daily Maverick

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Israel/OPT: Slovenia, Montenegro and Portugal must not assist the MV Kathrin’s delivery of explosives to Israel 

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Slovenia and Montenegro must stop the Portuguese-flagged MV Kathrin, believed to be carrying explosives bound for Israel, from docking at their ports, given the clear risk that such cargo would contribute to the commission of war crimes in Gaza, Amnesty International said. 

    According to Namibia’s government and Portugal’s Foreign Minister, the MV Kathrin’s cargo includes explosives destined for Israel. Namibian authorities refused to allow the vessel to enter its main harbour in August, citing information from the ship’s operator that its cargo includes eight containers of RDX Hexogen explosives bound for Israel. Statements from Slovenia’s Prime Minister’s office and Portugal’s Foreign Minister indicate the ship is heading for Montenegro and Slovenia’s port of Koper, where it will offload its cargo. It is unclear how the cargo will then reach Israel.  

    The deadly cargo believed to be on board the MV Kathrin must not reach Israel as there is a clear risk that such cargo would contribute to the commission of war crimes against Palestinian civilians.

    Nataša Posel, head of Amnesty International Slovenia

    “The deadly cargo believed to be on board the MV Kathrin must not reach Israel as there is a clear risk that such cargo would contribute to the commission of war crimes against Palestinian civilians,” said Nataša Posel, head of Amnesty International Slovenia.

    “Namibia rightfully upheld its international obligations by ensuring that the MV Kathrin did not transit military cargo to Israel through its port. Now it is up to Slovenia, Montenegro and all other states to do the same and avoid facilitating an unlawful transfer.” 

    International humanitarian law (IHL) prohibits all states from transferring weapons to a party to an armed conflict where there is a clear risk that doing so would contribute to the commission of war crimes or other serious IHL violations. 

    Amnesty International has documented extensive evidence of war crimes committed by all parties to the most recent escalation of the conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory using a wide variety of arms. Amnesty International research shows that Israel’s military has used explosive weapons to carry out direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and indiscriminate attacks in Gaza, blocked humanitarian assistance and collectively punished Palestinians over the past year. 

    States that continue to transfer arms to Israel are therefore acting in contravention of their obligations under Common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions and must act to prevent all such transfers with urgency. 

    Furthermore, as State Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty, Montenegro, Portugal and Slovenia have committed to establishing the highest possible common international standards for regulating the international trade in conventional arms for the purpose of reducing human suffering. As flag state, Portugal must not use its vessel to transfer the explosives or must remove its flag so as not to assist in the transfer. 

    “Amnesty International is calling for an immediate arms embargo on Israel and on Palestinian armed groups in Gaza due to their use of weapons to carry out war crimes and other serious violations. Any state that knowingly transfers arms to the parties in this ongoing conflict, including via transit of ships carrying arms and explosives, risks breaching their obligation not to encourage, aid or assist in violation of the Geneva Conventions. Portugal, Slovenia and Montenegro must not facilitate any such weapons transfer to Israel,” said Nataša Posel. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Israel/OPT: ‘explosives for Israel’ ship set to dock in Montenegro and Slovenia

    Source: Amnesty International –

    The MV Kathrin, a Portuguese-flagged vessel reportedly carrying explosives bound for Israel, is currently heading for Montenegro and Slovenia

    Ship is believed to be carrying eight containers of components for aircraft bombs and missiles

    ‘The deadly cargo believed to be on board the MV Kathrin must not reach Israel’ – Nataša Posel

    Slovenia and Montenegro must stop the Portuguese-flagged vessel MV Kathrin – believed to be carrying explosives bound for Israel – from docking at their ports given the clear risk that such cargo would contribute to the commission of war crimes in Gaza and Lebanon, Amnesty International said today. 

    According to the Namibian government and Portugal’s Foreign Minister, the MV Kathrin’s cargo includes explosives destined for Israel.

    In August, the Namibian authorities refused to allow the vessel to enter its main harbour citing information from the ship’s operator that its cargo includes eight containers of RDX Hexogen explosives bound for Israel. Statements from the Slovenian Prime Minister’s office and the Portuguese Foreign Minister indicate that the ship is heading for Montenegro and also for Slovenia’s port of Koper, where it will offload its cargo. It is unclear how the cargo will then reach Israel.

    On 31 August, Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said that eight containers of explosives aboard MV Kathrin “are reportedly key components in the aircraft bombs and missiles” used by Israel against Palestinians. Albanese called on all countries to block the ship from docking at their harbours.

    Countries which continue to transfer arms to Israel are acting in contravention of their obligations under Common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions and must act to prevent all such transfers with urgency. Furthermore, as state parties to the international Arms Trade Treaty, Montenegro, Portugal and Slovenia have committed to establishing the highest possible common international standards for regulating the international trade in conventional arms for the purpose of reducing human suffering. As the flag state, Portugal must not use its vessel to transfer the explosives or must remove its flag so as not to assist in the transfer.

    Amnesty has documented extensive evidence of war crimes committed by all parties to the most recent escalation of the conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory using a wide variety of arms. Amnesty research shows that the Israeli military has used explosive weapons to carry out direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and indiscriminate attacks in Gaza, blocked humanitarian assistance and collectively punished Palestinians over the past year.

    Nataša Posel, head of Amnesty International Slovenia, said:

    “The deadly cargo believed to be on board the MV Kathrin must not reach Israel as there is a clear risk that such cargo would contribute to the commission of war crimes against Palestinian civilians.

    “Namibia rightfully upheld its international obligations by ensuring that the MV Kathrin did not transit military cargo to Israel through its port.

    “Now it is up to Slovenia, Montenegro and all other states to do the same and avoid facilitating an unlawful transfer.

    “Amnesty International is calling for an immediate arms embargo on Israel and on Palestinian armed groups in Gaza due to their use of weapons to carry out war crimes and other serious violations.

    “Any state that knowingly transfers arms to the parties in this ongoing conflict, including via transit of ships carrying arms and explosives, risks breaching their obligation not to encourage, aid or assist in violation of the Geneva Conventions. Portugal, Slovenia and Montenegro must not facilitate any such weapons transfer to Israel.” 

    Timeline

    On 21 July, the MV Kathrin embarked with its cargo from Vietnam’s Hai Phong port.

    On 24 August, the Namibian authorities revoked previously-granted permission for the MV Kathrin to enter Namibia’s main harbour, citing information from the ship’s operator that some of the explosives on board were destined for Israel. This decision was based on concerns of potential complicity in war crimes in Gaza. The MV Kathrin was scheduled to dock at Namibia’s Walvis Bay on 25 August. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: MSF scales up response in Lebanon as bombings continue News Sep 26, 2024

    Source: Doctors Without Borders –

    NEW YORK/BEIRUT, September 26, 2024 — Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) remains committed to providing aid to people in Lebanon as the conflict with Israel continues to escalate and people’s medical and humanitarian needs grow. 

    “On Monday morning at 6:30 a.m. we woke up to powerful strikes on mountains and valleys, shelling villages from Baalbek to Hermel,” said Maram Sukkariyeh, a health promotion supervisor with MSF. “All we could hear was the sound of ambulance sirens. We saw smoke with each strike, and the bombs were hitting very close to houses. The strikes in northern Bekaa have not stopped for three days now and the sounds of drones and jets never leave us.”

    MSF teams unload medical supplies and other essential items to support the needs of people affected by the escalation of violence.
    Lebanon 2024 © Salam Daoud/MSF

    According to Lebanon’s disaster risk management unit, more than 104,000 people have been displaced by the recent conflict—often quickly and without necessities like medications. Many are traumatized from losing homes and loved ones, including MSF’s own staff. In addition to medical support, people are in need of basic supplies like mattresses and hygiene products as the shelters and schools currently housing them were not prepared to accommodate so many people.

    The strikes in northern Bekaa have not stopped for three days now and the sounds of drones and jets never leave us.

    Maram Sukkariyeh, MSF health promotion supervisor

    “People who left their homes need all kinds of support,” Sukkariyeh said. “Everyone is scared and worried and no one knows where to seek safety. With every strike, people are losing their lives, including children. The future is unknown and deciding what to do is very difficult. Everyone seeks safety for their families and children.”

    To help fill some of the gaps, MSF teams are distributing supplies, running mobile health clinics, and stepping up mental health efforts. MSF mobile clinics recently visited two locations in Mount Lebanon where displaced people have taken shelter to provide medical and mental health consultations. MSF also donated essential items including mattresses, blankets, and hygiene kits to displaced people in eight sites in Saida and Tripoli. Additionally, MSF reopened its clinic in Baalbek-Hermel to provide patients with much-needed medications for chronic conditions. Mental health helplines run by MSF are receiving over 60 calls a day from people experiencing rising mental health needs.

    Smoke seen in Lebanon’s Bekaa valley following bombings.
    Lebanon 2024 © Salam Daoud/MSF

    MSF is gravely concerned about Israel’s bombing campaign in Lebanon, much of which is taking place in densely populated urban areas. An immediate de-escalation of hostilities is critical to prevent further suffering, injury, and loss of life.

    MSF is assessing people’s needs in order to scale up support and will continue to coordinate closely with partners and hospital networks as the situation develops. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Afghanistan: International legal initiative an important step toward tackling the Taliban’s war on women

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the announcement by Australia, Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands during the UN General Assembly yesterday that they will initiate legal proceedings that could ultimately lead to action at the International Court of Justice against Afghanistan for numerous violations of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard said:

    “The Taliban have made life for Afghan women and girls intolerable. They have erased them from all spheres of life and systematically stripped away their rights and dignity. Amnesty International welcomes any steps by States to hold the Taliban accountable under international law for the widespread and institutionalized violation of women’s and girls’ human rights, which most likely amount to the crime against humanity of gender persecution. The international community should pursue all available avenues to end ongoing pervasive human rights violations in Afghanistan, including through the International Court of Justice.

    The Taliban have made life for Afghan women and girls intolerable. They have erased them from all spheres of life and systematically stripped away their rights and dignity

    Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard

    “This is a vital step toward securing justice for violations of the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. It should be complemented by other comprehensive efforts to address the full range of past and ongoing atrocities, including those against women and girls, that the Taliban and other state and non-state actors have committed throughout the continuous cycle of conflict in Afghanistan for over 40 years.

    “The world must act in solidarity with the courageous women and girls of Afghanistan by advocating for their rights and holding the Taliban regime to account. This welcome legal initiative should also serve as a timely reminder that States have a responsibility to provide international protection to all those fleeing systematic discrimination and oppression in Afghanistan.”

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Egypt: call for UK national Alaa Abdel Fattah to be released at end of jail term

    Source: Amnesty International –

    The prominent blogger, writer and human rights activist is due to be released on Sunday after five years of arbitrary imprisonment

    Egypt has track record of submitting political detainees to ‘rotation’, where bogus reasons are found to deny their release  

    ‘The UK government should pull out all the stops to ensure Alaa walks free this Sunday’ – Sacha Deshmukh  

    The Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release the prominent Egyptian-British blogger, writer and human rights activist Aala Abdel Fattah who will have completed his unjust five-year prison sentence in three days’ time (29 September), said Amnesty International today. 

    In reprisal for his activism, the Egyptian authorities arrested Alaa Abdel Fattah on 29 September 2019, and subsequently – following a grossly unfair trial – sentenced him to five years in prison on charges that included “spreading false news”. 

    Amnesty is warning that there is a risk that the authorities will refuse to release the prominent political activist despite his having served the full five years in prison, by refusing to count time spent in pre-trial detention as part of his prison sentence already served. The authorities may also seek to extend his arbitrary detention by bringing fresh charges against him. The Egyptian authorities have a track record of indefinitely detaining people imprisoned for political reasons by bringing new bogus identical or similar charges, even after a court has ordered their release or they’ve completed their sentence – a highly abusive practice known as “rotation”. 

    For years, Abdel Fattah was detained in deplorable conditions and security officials subjected him to torture and other ill-treatment in custody. In May 2022, following a public outcry, he was transferred to Wadi al-Natroun Prison where his health and detention conditions improved. It was only recently that the authorities finally allowed him access to reading materials, as well as television and written correspondence. 

    However, the prison authorities have continued to deny him access to fresh air and sunlight for the past five years, only allowing him to exercise in an indoor hall. The authorities also continue to deny him access to his lawyer as well as to consular visits from the UK authorities. 

    Mahmoud Shalaby, Amnesty International’s Egypt Researcher, said:

     “Alaa Abdel Fattah has spent most of the last decade being repeatedly arrested and unjustly imprisoned simply for peacefully exercising his human rights.

    “He is a prisoner of conscience – he should never have been forced to spend a single minute behind bars. 

    “Egyptian authorities have a dreadful track record of indefinitely detaining political dissidents by concocting new reasons to keep them locked up. 

    “The prospect that the authorities could further extend his unlawful imprisonment instead of releasing him is appalling.

    “If the authorities fail to release Alaa Abdel Fattah this would further compound the cruelty and injustice he has already suffered in custody. 

    “The Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release him and allow him to reunite with his loved ones at long last.” 

    Jailed for ‘spreading false news’ 

    On 20 December 2021, an Emergency State Security Court convicted Alaa Abdel Fattah on charges which included “spreading false news” and sentenced him to five years in prison following a grossly unfair trial in reprisal for his activism. Human rights lawyer Mohamed Baker and blogger Mohamed Radwan “Oxygen” were also convicted on similar charges, and sentenced to four years in prison. On 19 July 2023, following sustained campaigning for his release, Mohamed Baker received a presidential pardon after nearly four years of arbitrary detention. Abdel Fattah is a prominent political activist and government critic who has been repeatedly targeted for his role in the country’s 2011 uprising. He is among thousands of people who continue to be arbitrarily detained without legal basis in Egypt solely for exercising their human rights. The Egyptian authorities continued to carry out arrests of actual or perceived critics as part of an unrelenting crackdown on dissent.

    Long-running UK campaign

    Alaa Abdel Fattah is a UK national and his family have mounted a long-running campaign – supported by Amnesty – calling on the UK government to help secure his freedom. In June, the family marked Father’s Day by unfurling a giant banner down the side of Brighton Pier to draw attention to Abdel Fattah’s links to Brighton, the city in which his young son lives. In October and November 2022, Abdel Fattah’s family staged various protests outside the Foreign Office and Downing Street to highlight the fact that Alaa was conducting a lengthy hunger strike in prison in the lead-up to the COP27 climate change summit in Egypt. Amnesty has been calling on the UK government to develop a coherent strategy for how it acts over cases where UK nationals such as Abdel Fattah are arbitrarily detained overseas. Amnesty believes the new strategy should include, as a minimum, the Government calling for an arbitrarily-detained person’s immediate release (including publicly where requested by the family), pressing for access to a lawyer, a fair trial and medical care where relevant, demanding consular access, insisting that UK officials be able to attend trials, and regularly meeting with family members to outline the Government’s overall approach in the case.

    Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s Chief Executive, said: 

    “Alaa’s a courageous democracy activist who should never have spent a single day behind bars never mind five years, and the UK government should pull out all the stops to ensure Alaa walks free this Sunday and is guaranteed safe passage to the UK.

    “The family have campaigned long and hard on Alaa’s case and we share their frustration that the previous Government has appeared to ‘coast’ for long periods over his case rather than exerting sustained diplomatic pressure on his behalf. 

    “The UK government must press hard for Alaa’s release on Sunday and see this as an opportunity to turn a corner on how it deals with the cases of British nationals arbitrarily detained overseas.”

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Cameroon: Civil society members arbitrarily detained in Garoua must be immediately released

    Source: Amnesty International –

    The Cameroonian authorities must immediately release three supporters of the association Pouvoir au Peuple Camerounais (Power to the People of Cameroon – PPC) and their relatives arbitrarily arrested and detained for a fortnight and put an end to arbitrary arrests and detention in the country, Amnesty International said today.

    On 9 September, three supporters of the PPC, Moustapha Tizi, Mohamadou Ballo and Ibrahim Oumarou were arrested allegedly for wearing t-shirts bearing the name of the organization in the town of Figuil, in the Mayo-Louti department in the North region. Hapsatou Issa, the sister of a PPC spokesperson, was also arrested on the same day. The PPC, a youth organization founded in August 2024, calls for a regime change.

    “A year ahead of the presidential election in which President Paul Biya, who has been in power since 1982, plans to run, arbitrary arrests and detention of people perceived as critical against the regime are multiplying. The visit to Cameroon at the beginning of August by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, who cited ‘serious concerns over restrictions on the freedom of expression and association and the right to peaceful assembly’, has not altered this trend,” said Fabien Offner, researcher at Amnesty International’s regional office for West and Central Africa.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Egypt: Ensure Alaa Abdel Fattah is not detained after completing length of unjust prison term

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Egyptian-British activist Aala Abdel Fattah who will have completed the length of his unjust five-year prison sentence in three days on 29 September, said Amnesty International today.

    In reprisal for his activism, Egyptian authorities last arrested Alaa Abdel Fattah on 29 September 2019, and subsequently, following a grossly unfair trial, sentenced him to five years in prison on charges including “spreading false news.” There is a risk that the authorities will refuse to release the prominent political activist, despite having served the full five years in prison, by refusing to count time spent in pre-trial detention as part of his prison sentence already served.

    “Alaa Abdel Fattah has spent most of the last decade being repeatedly arrested and unjustly imprisoned simply for peacefully exercising his human rights. He is a prisoner of conscience – he should never have been forced to spend a single minute behind bars. The prospect that the authorities could further extend his unlawful imprisonment instead of releasing him is appalling,” said Mahmoud Shalaby, Amnesty International’s Egypt Researcher. 

    “Egyptian authorities have a dreadful track record of indefinitely detaining political dissidents by concocting new reasons to keep them locked up. If the authorities fail to release Alaa Abdel Fattah this would further compound the cruelty and injustice he has already suffered in custody. The Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release him and allow him to reunite with his loved ones at long last.”

    The authorities may also seek to extend his arbitrary detention by bringing fresh charges against him – Egyptian authorities have a track record of indefinitely detaining individuals imprisoned for political reasons by bringing new bogus identical or similar charges, even after a court has ordered their release or they have completed their sentence; an abusive practice known as “rotation”.

    For years Alaa Abdel Fattah was detained in deplorable conditions and security officials subjected him to torture and other ill-treatment in custody. Following a public outcry, he was transferred to Wadi al-Natroun Prison in May 2022 where his health and detention conditions improved. It was only recently that authorities finally allowed him access to reading material as well as television and written correspondence.

    However, prison authorities have continued to deny him access to fresh air and sunlight for the past five years,  only allowing him to exercise in an indoor hall. Authorities also continue to deny him access to his lawyer as well as to consular visits from the British authorities.

    On 20 December 2021, an Emergency State Security Court (ESSC) convicted Alaa Abdel Fattah on charges including “spreading false news” and sentenced him to five years in prison following a grossly unfair trial in reprisal for his activism. Human rights lawyer Mohamed Baker and blogger Mohamed Radwan “Oxygen” were also convicted on similar charges and sentenced to four years in prison. On 19 July 2023, following sustained campaigning for his release, Mohamed Baker received a presidential pardon after nearly four years of arbitrary detention.

    Background

    Alaa Abdel Fattah is a prominent political activist and government critic who has been targeted for his role in the 2011 uprising. He is among thousands of individuals who continue to be arbitrarily detained without legal basis in Egypt solely for exercising their human rights and/ or following proceedings violating fair trial rights. 

    Since President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s reactivation of the Presidential Pardons Committee (PPC) in April 2022, the Egyptian authorities released hundreds of individuals held for political reasons, including prominent activists, but Alaa Abdel Fattah was excluded from this process. Egyptian authorities continued to carry out arrests of actual or perceived critics amid an unrelenting crackdown on dissent.

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Hong Kong: Stand News journalists ‘jailed for doing their job’

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the jail sentences for “sedition” handed to two former editors at the defunct Hong Kong media outlet Stand News, Amnesty International’s China Director Sarah Brooks said: 

    “The jailing of two journalists simply for doing their job makes this another bleak day for press freedom in Hong Kong.

    “The fact they are the first journalists to be sentenced to jail on colonial-era ‘sedition’ charges since before the Hong Kong handover of 1997 indicates that there has rarely been a more dangerous time to work in media in the city.

    “Just like the numerous other ‘sedition’ and national security convictions of activists, teachers and lawyers that we have seen in Hong Kong in recent years, today’s sentencing looks designed to reinforce a ‘chilling effect’ that dissuades others in the city – and beyond – from criticizing the authorities. It is rule by fear.

    “Once again, we urge the Hong Kong authorities to stop using ‘sedition’ and other national security-related laws as a pretext to crack down on press freedom and other human rights. The two journalists sentenced today have committed no internationally recognized crime and their convictions should be quashed.”

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Japan: Acquittal of man who spent 45 years on death row pivotal moment for justice

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the acquittal of Japanese man Iwao Hakamada, who spent nearly five decades on death row, Amnesty International’s East Asia Researcher Boram Jang said:

    “We are overjoyed by the court’s decision to exonerate Iwao Hakamada. After enduring almost half a century of wrongful imprisonment and a further 10 years waiting for his retrial, this verdict is an important recognition of the profound injustice he endured for most of his life. It ends an inspiring fight to clear his name by his sister Hideko and all those who supported him.

    “As we celebrate this long overdue day of justice for Hakamada, we are reminded of the irreversible harm caused by the death penalty. We strongly urge Japan to abolish the death penalty to prevent this from happening again.

    “Japanese authorities must also review all existing death sentences, particularly when there are concerns of mental and intellectual disabilities. Only complete abolition of capital punishment will ensure that such grave errors are never repeated, and people not irreversibly and arbitrarily deprived of their lives. Amnesty International will continue to push for the abolition of the death penalty and for reforms that ensure fairness and justice for all.”

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Afghanistan: Calls for legal action against Taliban is ‘vital step’ to secure justice for women and girls

    Source: Amnesty International –

    © Kiana Hayeri / Amnesty International

    Taliban’s violation of women’s and girls’ rights likely amounts to a crime against humanity

    The international community should pursue all available avenues to end ongoing human rights violations in Afghanistan

    Governments also need to protect all those fleeing discrimination and oppression

    ‘The Taliban have made life for Afghan women and girls intolerable. They have erased them from all spheres of life’- Agnès Callamard

    Responding to the announcement by Australia, Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands during the UN General Assembly yesterday that they will initiate legal proceedings that could lead to action at the International Court of Justice against Afghanistan for numerous violations of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said:

    “The Taliban have made life for Afghan women and girls intolerable. They have erased them from all spheres of life and systematically stripped away their rights and dignity.

    “Amnesty International welcomes any steps by states to hold the Taliban accountable under international law for the widespread and institutionalised violation of women’s and girls’ human rights, which most likely amount to the crime against humanity of gender persecution.

    “The international community should pursue all available avenues to end ongoing pervasive human rights violations in Afghanistan, including through the International Court of Justice.

    “This is a vital step towards securing justice for violations, it should be complemented by other comprehensive efforts to address the full range of past and ongoing atrocities, including those against women and girls, that the Taliban and other state and non-state actors have committed throughout the continuous cycle of conflict in Afghanistan for more than 40 years.

    “The world must act in solidarity with the courageous women and girls of Afghanistan by advocating for their rights and holding the Taliban regime to account.

    “This welcome legal initiative should also serve as a timely reminder that governments have a responsibility to provide international protection to all those fleeing systematic discrimination and oppression in Afghanistan.”

    View latest press releases

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Global: Abortion rights defenders facing violence and stigmatization share powerful stories as part of Amnesty’s new podcast

    Source: Amnesty International –

    People defending the right to abortion have revealed what it’s like to provide life-saving healthcare in the face of violence, repression and stigma, as part of Amnesty International’s second season of On the Side of Humanity podcast.

    The three-part series – slated for release on International Safe Abortion Day on 28 September and available via all good podcast apps – features stories from healthcare workers and activists who are defending the right of women, girls and anyone who can get pregnant to take control over their own bodies and to get the best available healthcare when they most need it. Each episode is approximately 30 minutes.

    “Everyone has the right to safe abortion. However, with anti-abortion narratives and legislation gaining ground around the world, people who need abortions, or who make them happen, face increasing, life-changing risks,” said Fernanda Doz Costa, Director of the Gender, Racial Justice, Migrants and Refugees Programme at Amnesty International.

    “People defending the right to abortion, including those providing essential health services such as nurses, midwives, doctors, as well as activists distributing abortion-inducing pills, are being stigmatized, intimidated, attacked and subjected to unjust prosecutions, making their work increasingly difficult and dangerous to carry out. It’s time to shine a light on their stories through Amnesty’s new podcast and show them the support they deserve.”

    Those featured in Amnesty’s new podcast are no different – having faced a tirade of abuse, simply for supporting those in need of an abortion. Some have even been imprisoned, such as Venezuelan teacher and human rights defender Vannesa Rosales, whohelped her 13-year-old student who had been raped to get access to a safe abortion.

    “They raided my house and confiscated a grooming kit for my pets with scissors in it,” said Vannesa. “It was used as evidence that I was operating a clandestine abortion clinic. Immediately after, they arrested both of us, the girl’s mother and myself. She was facing up to five years in prison and I up to 15 years.”

    Alongside Vannesa’s story, the podcast features abortion rights defenders including Verónica Cruz Sánchez, founder of Las Libres – a feminist Mexican organisation that coordinates a network of daring activists sending free abortion pills to women in the USA; midwife Sylvia Hamata from Namibia advocating for safe abortion access and battling against abortion stigma in her country; eminent Maltese gynaecologist and Professor of Medicine Isabel Stabile; gender rights activist and Amnesty’s campaign partner Stephanie Willman Bordat; world-renowned gynaecologist and former president of FIGO (The International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics) Professor Sabaratnam Arulkumaran; as well as Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard.

    Criminalization of abortion is the biggest contributing factor to the estimated 35 million unsafe abortions happening every year. It means healthcare staff are constantly caught in the conflict between the ethical and professional duty to provide the best available care and being criminally liable if they do not follow harmful laws.

    “Research over several decades has shown that being able to control one’s reproduction and to exercise reproductive autonomy affects all spheres of life. It is central to the achievement of gender equality and social, racial, gender and economic justice. As part of our global campaign on the right to abortion, Amnesty International calls on states around the world to fulfil their obligations to protect the right to safe and legal abortion for all, and to respect and protect the right of all those who defend the right to abortion,” said Fernanda Doz Costa.

    On the Side of Humanity, Season Two, is available to stream on Spotify, Apple and Deezer.

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Hong Kong: ‘Rule by fear’ as first journalists sentenced to prison under sedition law for doing their job

    Source: Amnesty International –

    (Left) Former Chief Editor of Stand News Chung Pui-kuen and (Right) Former Acting Chief Editor of Stand News Patrick Lam © Vernon Yuen/NurPhoto via Getty Images

    Journalists Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam should have their convictions quashed

    Authorities must stop using sedition charge to gag press freedom and other human rights  

    ‘There has rarely been a more dangerous time to work in media in the city’- Sarah Brooks

    Responding to the sentencing to prison for sedition of Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam – two former editors at the defunct Hong Kong media outlet Stand News, Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International’s China Director, said:

    “The jailing of two journalists simply for doing their job makes this another bleak day for press freedom in Hong Kong.

    “The fact they are the first journalists to be sentenced to jail on colonial-era ‘sedition’ charges since before the Hong Kong handover of 1997 indicates that there has rarely been a more dangerous time to work in media in the city.

    “Just like the numerous other ‘sedition’ and national security convictions of activists, teachers and lawyers that we have seen in Hong Kong in recent years, today’s sentencing looks designed to reinforce a chilling effect that dissuades others in the city – and beyond – from criticising the authorities. It is rule by fear.

    “Once again, we urge the Hong Kong authorities to stop using ‘sedition’ and other national security-related laws as a pretext to crack down on press freedom and other human rights. The two journalists sentenced today have committed no internationally recognised crime and their convictions should be quashed.”

    Silencing press freedom

    Former chief editor of Stand News Chung Pui-kuen was today sentenced to 21 months in prison and former acting chief editor Patrick Lam was sentenced to 11 months after being convicted last month of conspiring to publish “seditious” publications under Hong Kong’s sedition law. Because both have already spent almost a year in pre-trial detention, Lam will not be returned to prison but Chung will be.

    The journalists’ prosecution along with Stand News’s parent company Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Limited was based on 17 allegedly seditious articles, including news reports, interviews, profiles, and opinion pieces. Stand News, a non-profit digital news outlet, ceased operating and deleted its website in December 2021 after its newsroom was raided by more than 200 national security police officers. 

    The journalists’ trial began in October 2022 – its conclusion was postponed numerous times before the courts issued a long-awaited verdict last month; the sentencing was also delayed.

    View latest press releases

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Japan: Acquittal of man after more than 45 years on death row highlights ‘irreversible harm’ of death penalty

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Iwao Hakamada retracted ‘confession’ alleging it was made under duress and police violence 

    In 2023, 107 of the 115 people on death row had their death sentences finalised putting them at risk of execution

    Authorities must review all existing death sentences and abolish the death penalty

    ‘We strongly urge Japan to abolish the death penalty to prevent this from happening again’ – Boram Jang

    Responding to the acquittal of Japanese man Iwao Hakamada, who spent more than 45 years on death row, Boram Jang, Amnesty International’s East Asia Researcher, said:

    “We are overjoyed by the court’s decision to exonerate Iwao Hakamada. After enduring almost half a century of wrongful imprisonment and a further 10 years waiting for his retrial, this verdict is an important recognition of the profound injustice he endured for most of his life. It ends an inspiring fight to clear his name by his sister Hideko and all those who supported him.

    “As we celebrate this long overdue day of justice for Hakamada, we are reminded of the irreversible harm caused by the death penalty. We strongly urge Japan to abolish the death penalty to prevent this from happening again.

    “Japanese authorities must also review all existing death sentences, particularly when there are concerns of mental and intellectual disabilities. Only complete abolition of capital punishment will ensure that such grave errors are never repeated, and people not irreversibly and arbitrarily deprived of their lives.

    “Amnesty International will continue to push for the abolition of the death penalty and for reforms that ensure fairness and justice for all.”

    Japan’s death row

    During his first trial Hakamada was convicted of murdering his employer and his employer’s family, largely based on a forced “confession” made after 20-days of interrogation which Hakamada retracted during the trial, alleging police had threatened and beaten him. He was sentenced to death by Shizuoka District Court in 1968 and spent more than 45 years on death row.

    Japan has continued to carry out executions, including of people who had judicial appeals pending, in violation of international safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty. As of 31 December 2023, 107 out of the 115 people on death row had their death sentences finalised and were at risk of execution.

    Those on death row continue to be held in solitary confinement and in the absence of effective safeguards or transparent regular psychiatric evaluations – people with mental health and intellectual disabilities continue to be subjected to the death penalty in violation of international law and standards. The last execution in Japan was carried out on 26 July 2022.

    Amnesty opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime, guilt, innocence or other characteristics of the individual, or of the method used by the state to carry out the execution.

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Italian authorities punish Geo Barents rescue ship with two detention orders

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    Rome –  the Italian authorities imposed yet another punitive measure on the Geo Barents, the search and rescue vessel operated by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), for performing its legal and humanitarian duty to save lives at sea. This time, the vessel received two separate detention orders, immediately after the Geo Barents had finished disembarking 206 survivors in Genoa, in northern Italy. The orders are a clear attempt by the authorities to ensure that the Geo Barents will not be able to sail again to save lives in the Mediterranean Sea.

    The first detention order for 60 days was issued under the ‘Piantedosi Decree’1 and was based on the recurrent allegations that the Geo Barents had failed to comply with instructions of the Libyan Coast Guard during a rescue operation on 19 September. On that day, the Geo Barents had performed a first rescue and was assigned Genoa as a place of safety. While navigating there, they received a distress alert from Sea-Watch’s monitoring plane, Seabird2, about 100 people in distress on an overcrowded wooden boat. The Geo Barents was given the go-ahead by the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) to assess the situation, and was the only vessel on scene when it arrived. Given the seriousness of the situation and the captain’s obligation under international law to render immediate assistance, the MSF team proceeded with the rescue.

    Just as the MSF team was about to finish the rescue, with no more than 20 people left in the boat out of 110, a Libyan Coast Guard patrol boat2, donated by Italy, arrived on the scene.  

    “The Libyan patrol boat arrived when we were almost finished with the operation, more than five hours after the first alert about these people in distress,” said Fulvia Conte, MSF search and rescue team leader. “They arrived, threatened to shoot, and carried out unsafe and intimidating manoeuvres around the people in distress and the MSF rescue team.”

    This is the fourth detention order for Geo Barents under the ‘Piantedosi decree’, following the one issued a month ago. That order was also for 60 days, but was later suspended by the Civil Court of Salerno.

    In addition, a second detention order, under technical regulations, was issued on 23 September after a very in-depth Port State Control inspection of the vessel found eight technical deficiencies.  

    “The Port State Control inspections are another layer of administrative and technical instrumentalisation of laws and regulations that the authorities have been using for the past seven years to obstruct the work of humanitarian search and rescue vessels in the Mediterranean,” added Conte. “Our vessel had successfully passed previous inspections; this one seems to have the intention to ensure we don’t operate anytime soon. We are moving to quickly address these deficiencies and to go back to prevent deaths at sea.”

    The most recent detention came just 12 days after the Court of Salerno suspended a similar detention, acknowledging the lifesaving and humanitarian nature of MSF’s search and rescue vessel.

    “We will appeal to the competent court against these new detentions,” says Juan Matias Gil, MSF search and rescue representative. “The more Italian courts rule in favour of humanitarian vessels, the more arbitrary detentions are imposed by this Italian government. This is unacceptable for a country under the rule of law.”

    “People fleeing Libya often tell us about the violent interceptions at sea carried out by the EU-backed Libyan Coast Guard,” continues Gil. “It has been documented not only by the United Nations, but also by independent investigative journalism, that the Libyan Coast Guard is complicit in serious human rights violations, amounting to crimes against humanity, and collusion with smugglers and traffickers.

    “It is a disgrace that the Italian authorities still consider the Libyan Coast Guard to be a reliable agency and source of information,” says Gil.

    MSF has been active in search and rescue activities since 2015, working on eight different rescue vessels (alone or in partnership with other NGOs) and having rescued more than 91,000 people. Since launching search and rescue operations on board Geo Barents in May 2021, MSF teams have rescued more than 12,540 people, recovered the bodies of 24 people, arranged for medical evacuation of 16 people and assisted in the delivery of one baby.

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Lebanon/Israel: Fears for safety of civilians grow as devastating death toll in Lebanon continues to rise

    Source: Amnesty International –

    The exponential rise in the death toll in Lebanon over the past three days amid an escalation in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah is a reminder of the crucial need for all parties to the conflict to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law, Amnesty International said today.

    On Monday [23 September] alone, at least 558 people, including 50 children and 94 women, were killed and more than 1,800 injured by Israeli attacks in Lebanon, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry, as Israel announced the start of Operation Northern Arrows. Scores more have been killed since. Hezbollah attacks on Israel have also significantly intensified and according to Israeli media reports, at least 15 people were injured, the majority by shrapnel or debris and others while trying to access shelter.

    “On Monday, 23 September, Lebanon experienced its deadliest day since the end of the country’s civil war in 1990. We are deeply alarmed by the staggering death toll within a single day, which continues to rise, and the devastating impact on civilians with almost 500,000 displaced from south Lebanon, the Bekaa and other regions that have come under intense bombardment. In northern Israel, due to attacks from Lebanon around 63,000 residents have been displaced since last October. As Israel continues to intensify and expand its bombardment, and Hezbollah continues to launch attacks into Israel, all parties to the conflict must respect international humanitarian law and take all feasible precautions to protect civilian lives,” said Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns.   

    On Monday, 23 September, Lebanon experienced its deadliest day since the end of the country’s civil war in 1990. We are deeply alarmed by the staggering death toll within a single day, which continues to rise

    Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International

    “In the past, conflicts between Israel and Hezbollah have been characterized by serious violations of international humanitarian law. This raises serious concerns that the current escalation in hostilities will inevitably result again in civilian casualties, injuries and widespread destruction in Lebanon and Israel. We urge all states to halt all arms transfers and other forms of military assistance to Israel and Hezbollah due to the significant risk that these weapons could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes.”

    Since October 2023, Hezbollah and Israel have engaged in hostilities, mostly confined to the south of Lebanon and north of Israel.  As of 10 September, the total death toll due to Israeli attacks had risen to 589 in Lebanon, as of 19 September, the toll due to Hezbollah attacks rose to 34 in Israel. A further 12 people were killed in the occupied Golan Heights. The spike in the death toll in Lebanon over the past three days alone is therefore exponential.

    During the 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, the death toll was 1,100 in Lebanon and 43 in Israel. Amnesty International’s investigations revealed that during the conflict, Israeli forces carried out indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on a large scale, including massive destruction of civilian infrastructure. It also found that Hezbollah carried out direct and indiscriminate attacks on civilians and appeared to fail to take necessary precautions to protect civilians in Lebanon from the effects of Israeli attacks.

    Many of the areas struck by Israeli attacks in recent days were crowded residential areas, according to videos reviewed by Amnesty International. Lebanon’s health minister said that medical facilities and personnel also came under fire, killing four medics and injuring at least 16.

    Respecting international humanitarian law requires ensuring that only military objectives are targeted, avoiding indiscriminate attacks, disproportionate attack, and direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and taking all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians and damage to civilian infrastructure. Using explosive weapons with wide area effects in the vicinity of densely populated residential areas is likely to violate the prohibition of indiscriminate attacks and also can lead to disproportionate attacks.

    The Israeli authorities and Hezbollah and other armed groups need to recognize that the rules of international humanitarian law apply in all circumstances, whatever the reason for the conflict. Nothing can excuse unlawful killing and injury of civilians

    Erika Guevara Rosas

    “On 25 September, the Israeli army spokesperson issued a public warning in Arabic, advising people not to return to their homes “until further notice” and stating that “air strikes are ongoing”. Such warnings do not absolve Israel of its responsibilities under international humanitarian law to distinguish between military objectives and civilians, and to take all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians. According to international law, a warning must ensure that sufficient time is granted. Even so, evacuation calls do not render the impacted areas free-fire zones,” said Erika Guevara Rosas.  

    “Israel’s relentless onslaught on Gaza has already seen more than 42,000 Palestinians killed over the past year. The latest assault on Lebanon has brought a fresh wave of horror to the wider region. The Israeli authorities and Hezbollah and other armed groups need to recognize that the rules of international humanitarian law apply in all circumstances, whatever the reason for the conflict. Nothing can excuse unlawful killing and injury of civilians.”  

    Background

    Israel’s Operation Northern Arrows began on 23 September. During the first day, Israeli forces carried out at least 1,600 strikes in areas across Lebanon. Hezbollah also launched more than 200 rockets towards Israel.

    Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in ongoing cross-border hostilities since the group launched attacks into northern Israel following the start of Israel’s offensive in the occupied Gaza Strip in October 2023. As of 10 September 2024, Israeli attacks on south Lebanon and the Bekaa since 7 October 2023 had killed at least 137 civilians, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health and the United Nations. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced from south Lebanon, the Bekaa, and other areas due to the ongoing hostilities, the majority of them fleeing the latest attacks. 

    Across the same period, Hezbollah and other armed groups have fired projectiles at northern Israel and killed at least 14 civilians in Israel, according to the Israeli authorities. On 27 July, 12 civilians, all children, were killed in an attack on Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights. Around 63,000 residents of northern Israel have been evacuated since 8 October. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Lebanon: ‘deep alarm’ over staggering death toll in Israeli attacks

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have hit crowded residential areas, with children and medics among the dead

    Warnings to Lebanese civilians do not absolve Israel of responsibilities under international humanitarian law

    ‘Nothing can excuse unlawful killing and injury of civilians’ – Erika Guevara Rosas

    The exponential rise in the death toll in Lebanon over the past three days amid an escalation in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah is a reminder of the crucial need for all parties to the conflict to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law, Amnesty International said today. 

    During the first day of its offensive, Israeli forces carried out at least 1,600 airstrikes in areas across Lebanon, while Hezbollah also launched more than 200 rockets towards Israel. On Monday alone, at least 558 people – including 50 children and 94 women – were killed and more than 1,800 injured by Israeli attacks in Lebanon, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

    Scores more have been killed since. Hezbollah attacks on Israel have also significantly intensified and according to Israeli media reports at least 15 people were injured, the majority by shrapnel or debris and others while trying to access shelter.

    Many of the areas struck by Israeli attacks in recent days were crowded residential areas, according to videos reviewed by Amnesty. Lebanon’s health minister said that medical facilities and personnel also came under fire, killing four medics and injuring at least 16.

    Respecting international humanitarian law requires ensuring that only military objectives are targeted, avoiding indiscriminate attacks, disproportionate attacks and direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects, and taking all feasible precautions to minimise harm to civilians and damage to civilian infrastructure. Using explosive weapons with wide-area effects in the vicinity of densely-populated residential areas is likely to violate the prohibition of indiscriminate attacks and also can lead to disproportionate attacks.

    Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns, said:  

    “We are deeply alarmed by the staggering death toll within a single day, which continues to rise, and the devastating impact on civilians with almost 500,000 displaced from south Lebanon, the Bekaa and other regions that have come under intense bombardment.

    “As Israel continues to intensify and expand its bombardment, and Hezbollah continues to launch attacks into Israel, all parties to the conflict must respect international humanitarian law and take all feasible precautions to protect civilian lives. 

    “We urge all states to halt all arms transfers and other forms of military assistance to Israel and Hezbollah due to the significant risk that these weapons could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes.

    “Israel’s relentless onslaught on Gaza has already seen more than 42,000 Palestinians killed over the past year. The latest assault on Lebanon has brought a fresh wave of horror to the wider region. The Israeli authorities and Hezbollah and other armed groups need to recognise that the rules of international humanitarian law apply in all circumstances, whatever the reason for the conflict. Nothing can excuse unlawful killing and injury of civilians.”  

    Israeli warnings

    On 25 September, the Israeli army spokesperson issued a public warning in Arabic, advising people not to return to their homes “until further notice”, stating that “airstrikes are ongoing”. Such warnings do not absolve Israel of its responsibilities under international humanitarian law to distinguish between military objectives and civilians, and to take all feasible precautions to minimise harm to civilians. According to international law, a warning must ensure that sufficient time is granted. Even so, evacuation calls do not render the impacted areas free-fire zones.  

    Cross-border hostilities

    Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in ongoing cross-border hostilities since the group launched attacks into northern Israel following the start of Israel’s offensive in the occupied Gaza Strip last October. As of 10 September, Israeli attacks on south Lebanon and the Bekaa since 7 October 2023 had killed at least 137 civilians, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health and the United Nations. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced from south Lebanon, the Bekaa, and other areas due to the ongoing hostilities, the majority of them fleeing the latest attacks. Across the same period, Hezbollah and other armed groups have fired projectiles at northern Israel and killed at least 14 civilians in Israel, according to the Israeli authorities. On 27 July, 12 civilians, all children, were killed in an attack on Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights. Around 63,000 residents of northern Israel have been evacuated since 8 October. 

    2006 conflict

    During the 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, the death toll was 1,100 in Lebanon and 43 in Israel. Amnesty’s investigations revealed that during the conflict, Israeli forces carried out indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on a large scale, including massive destruction of civilian infrastructure. It also found that Hezbollah carried out direct and indiscriminate attacks on civilians and appeared to fail to take necessary precautions to protect civilians in Lebanon from the effects of Israeli attacks. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Oxfam responds to Lebanon Crisis

    Source: Oxfam –

    Oxfam is responding to the escalating crisis in Lebanon, providing essential support to the hundreds of thousands of people who have been forced to flee as Israeli airstrikes bombard their homes and communities. The influx of internally displaced people, primarily from southern Lebanon, will quickly create disastrous conditions for local communities, beyond the ability of an overloaded international humanitarian system to properly meet. 

    Oxfam and our partners are supporting internally displaced people in shelters in Beirut, Mount Lebanon and North Lebanon with clean water and sanitation, emergency cash, food, and hygiene and menstrual hygiene kits.  

    Oxfam’s Lebanon country director Bachir Ayoub said the country can ill afford this on top of existing crises.   

    “This conflict was predictable and avoidable. It is the result of the failure to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. This latest emergency will only deepen the existing challenges facing the people of Lebanon and further destabilize an already volatile region.” 

    Bachir Ayoub, Oxfam in Lebanon Country Director

    Oxfam

    “This conflict was predictable and avoidable. It is the result of the failure to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. For decades, the people of Lebanon have endured one crisis after another without getting the opportunity to fully recover. This latest emergency will only deepen the existing challenges facing the people of Lebanon and further destabilize an already volatile region.” 

    The international community must condemn this escalation and take bold action to stop it now. Israel continues to act with impunity and it must be held to account for its actions in both Lebanon and Gaza. All parties must abide by international humanitarian law and held to account where potential violations may be involved.  

    The spread of hostilities into Lebanon has inflicted immense damage on civilian infrastructure and led to a tragic loss of life. Lebanon and the region cannot afford to bear the weight of this crisis. This broader regional escalation underscores the urgent need for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.  

    Roslyn Boatman in Beirut | roslyn.boatman@oxfam.org | +916 78 179 540 

    Matt Grainger in the UK | matt.grainger@oxfam.org | +44-07730680837 

    For updates, please follow @NewsFromOxfam and @oxfam

     

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Concrete action needed in fight against antimicrobial resistance

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    • Governments must take bold action to make meaningful progress against drug resistance worldwide.
    • Drawing on our years of experience tackling drug resistance, we urge governments to build on their commitments at the second-ever United Nations High Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistance.

    Geneva/New York – Ahead of the second-ever United Nations (UN) High Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistanceAMR — when microbes like bacteria, viruses, and fungi evolve and survive despite the antimicrobial medicines, such as antibiotics, used against them — can make medical care less effective and much more difficult, prolonged, and costly for patients and treatment providers. (AMR) tomorrow, where world leaders will come together to agree on commitments to advance the global response to AMR, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) calls on governments to take swift, bold action to translate this political declaration into meaningful progress against drug resistance.

    Headway against AMR since the first declaration nearly a decade ago has been inadequate and inequitable, with low- and middle-income countries – and humanitarian contexts, in particular – least equipped to respond despite bearing the highest burdens of drug-resistant infection. Drawing on years of experience tackling drug resistance around the world, MSF urges governments to build on the commitments made and take an ambitious set of follow-on steps to empower those most affected by AMR to prevent, detect, and respond to it.

    AMR is a leading cause of death worldwide, and contributed to to 4.95 million deaths in 2019 alone, with recent estimates showing the threat is still growing at alarming rates, possibly contributing to 8.2 million deaths annually by 2050.https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)01867-1/fulltext

    “We are seeing staggering rates of drug-resistant infections in many of the low-resource and humanitarian settings where we work, in large part because healthcare workers don’t have what they need to prevent, detect, and respond to AMR,” says Dr Christos Christou, International President of MSF. “The UN Political Declaration on antimicrobial resistance is a welcome step towards strengthening the global AMR response and expresses important aspirations for global equity and solidarity.” 

    “Considering the magnitude of the challenge of AMR though, and how few of the hardest-hit countries have been able to fund and implement national action plans, the declaration text should have been much more concrete and ambitious,” he says. “The declaration must now go beyond words on paper: governments must not only enact and be accountable to the commitments they’ve made, but they must also build on and refine them to ensure low-resource and humanitarian settings are no longer left behind.”

    People in low- and middle-income countries experience the highest rates of AMR and infectious diseases globally, but are the least likely to have access to healthcare, including the medicines, vaccines, and diagnostics they need. In humanitarian settings, other factors compound the AMR crisis. Conflicts or natural disasters, for example, can result in traumatic injuries that can easily become infected and force people to take refuge in overcrowded settings where resistant bacteria can spread easily.

    In the political declaration, governments acknowledged the importance of addressing AMR in humanitarian settings like those in which MSF works, as well as several issues that MSF has highlighted as key priorities in responding to AMR. However, the commitments made to address these issues should have been bolder and more precisely calibrated to address global inequities. MSF recommends that governments build on and refine these commitments in the following ways:

    • The declaration’s commitment to include affected communities and humanitarian organisations in the governance of platforms and mechanisms to address AMR must now be put into practice. Only by ensuring the inclusive participation of these groups in global AMR initiatives can an effective roadmap for reaching the most underserved settings take shape. For example, if established, the proposed Independent Panel on Evidence for Action Against AMR must adhere to principles of impartiality, transparency, and accountability to all countries, and prioritise research in and for communities most affected by AMR. This is important, because communities in conflict-affected, fragile and humanitarian settings are more vulnerable to AMR, but evidence needed to inform the response in these settings is acutely lacking.
    • The declaration recognizes the need for strengthening laboratory capacity and commits to “improve access to diagnosis and care,” but this broad commitment must be made more specific and precise in follow-on agreements and accountability frameworks to ensure expanded and equitable availability of quality-assured microbiology laboratories. Access to microbiology laboratories is a critical foundation for preventing, detecting and controlling AMR more effectively, but many places with high rates of AMR do not have quality laboratories. 
    • The commitment to increased international financing and technical assistance to enable low- and middle-income countries to implement national action plans to address AMR must result in stronger and more ambitious funding, as the currently proposed US$100 million to see 60 per cent of countries achieve funded plans to tackle AMR by 2030 is not sufficient to address a health issue of this magnitude.
    • The commitment to ensure timely and equitable access to affordable medical tools, including antimicrobials and diagnostic tests, must translate into concrete action. The significant global gaps in access to medical tools must be tracked and quantified to guide efforts to achieve more equitable access, and resources allocated accordingly for both access strategies and antimicrobial stewardship programs. Furthermore, when governments provide funding for research and development for new antimicrobials, they should prioritise public and nonprofit initiatives, as these facilitate access, stewardship, and collaborative approaches to research. Funders must also attach upfront conditions ensuring equitable global access to any resulting medical tools into agreements when providing the “push” and “pull” funding called for in the declaration.

    “To effectively combat AMR globally, governments must address the significant discrepancies in the amount of evidence for action available in high-income and low-resource settings,” said Dušan Jasovský, Antimicrobial Resistance Pharmacist with the MSF Access Campaign. “This means that the Independent Panel on Evidence for Action Against AMR proposed in the declaration must prioritise research in communities most affected by AMR, which are often in humanitarian or low-resource settings where there is currently the least evidence to guide action.”

    “This panel is in a great position to inform a response to drug resistance in the hardest-hit areas based on interventions that work, but to do so it must operate with transparency, accountability, and impartiality, backed by ambitious financial means of implementation, and in close collaboration with affected communities,” says Jasovský.

    MSF is a leading actor in preventing, detecting, and responding to AMR in humanitarian settings, with infection prevention and control, and stewardship initiatives across multiple contexts and 50 sites with planned or existing access to diagnostic microbiology in 20 countries worldwide. MSF has developed an interdisciplinary approach to addressing AMR which includes targeted training and support for infection prevention and control, and antimicrobial stewardship, and in some cases also efforts to provide access to microbiology lab-based diagnosis.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Sudan: Pregnant women and children dying in shocking numbers in South Darfur

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    • A new report by MSF details how women and children are dying of preventable conditions in South Darfur state, as their health needs surpass what MSF can respond to.
    • We call on the UN to act decisively and mobilise a response with all available resources.

    Nyala/ Amsterdam – One of the worst maternal and child health emergencies in the world is unfolding in South Darfur, Sudan, according to a report released by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Pregnant, birthing, and postpartum women, as well as children, are dying from preventable conditions as their health needs far exceed what MSF can respond to.

    Driven to oblivion: the toll of conflict and neglect on the health of mothers and children in South Darfur reveals the number of maternal deaths in just two MSF-supported hospitals in South Darfur between January and August to be more than seven per cent of the total number of maternal deaths in all MSF facilities worldwide in 2023. A screening of children for malnutrition also found rates well beyond emergency thresholds.

    Driven to oblivion: the toll of conflict and neglect on the health of mothers and children in South Darfur pdf — 9.75 MB Download

    For these crises to be addressed, the United Nations (UN) must act decisively to prevent further loss of life in Darfur. The UN must accelerate the return of UN staff and agencies to Darfur and leverage all available resources and political influence to ensure that aid reaches those in need. Only a coordinated international response, supported by robust funding and unyielding pressure on the warring parties, can avert mass starvation and alleviate the suffering of millions.

    “This is a crisis unlike any other I have seen in my career,” says Dr Gillian Burkhardt, MSF sexual and reproductive health activity manager speaking in Nyala, South Darfur. “Multiple health emergencies are happening simultaneously with almost no international response from the UN and others. Newborn babies, pregnant women, and new mothers are dying in shocking numbers. And so many of these deaths are due to preventable conditions, but almost everything has broken down.”

    From January to August in South Darfur, there were 46 maternal deaths in Nyala Teaching and Kas Rural hospitals, where MSF teams provide obstetric care and other services. The scarcity of functioning health facilities and unaffordable transportation costs mean many women arrive at hospital in critical condition. Around 78 per cent of these 46 deaths occurred in the first 24 hours following admission.

    Fatoum Abdelkarim, from Nyala, is in her seventh month of pregnancy. South Darfur, Sudan, September 2024.
    Abdoalsalam Abdallah/MSF

    Sepsis was the most common cause of maternal death in all MSF-supported facilities in South Darfur. The dearth of functioning health facilities forces women to give birth in unsanitary environments that lack basic items such as soap, clean delivery mats, and sterilised instruments. Without these basic items women are getting infections. And with antibiotics in low supply, they can arrive at a hospital only to be met with no treatment option available.

    “A pregnant patient from a rural area waited two days to collect the money needed to get care,” says Maria Fix, MSF medical team leader in South Darfur. “When she travelled to a health centre, they had no drugs, so she went back home.”

    “After three days, her condition deteriorated but again she had to wait five hours for transportation. She was already in a coma when she reached us,” says Fix. “She died from a preventable infection.”

    The crisis in South Darfur extends to children, with thousands on the brink of death and starvation, while others are dying of preventable conditions. From January to June 2024, 48 newborns died from sepsis in in Nyala Teaching and Kas Rural hospitals, meaning one in five newborns with sepsis did not survive.

    In August, 30,000 children under two-years-old were screened for malnutrition in South Darfur. Of these, 32.5% were found to be acutely malnourished, well beyond the World Health Organization’s emergency threshold of 15%. Furthermore, 8.1% of children screened were severely acutely malnourished.

    Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, was a hub for humanitarian organisations before the war. But since its outbreak, most organisations have not returned. The UN still has no international staff in the city, where MSF is one of the only international organisations present. Between January and August, MSF teams in South Darfur provided 12,600 ante- and post-natal consultations and assisted in 4,330 normal and complicated deliveries.

    Across Sudan, interrelated crises are compounding to cause immense suffering, with little help available, as Dr Burkhardt, who worked in North Darfur prior to her assignment in South Darfur, explains.

    “The disparity between the huge needs for healthcare, food, and basic services, and the consistently lacking international response is disgraceful,” she says. “We call on donors, the UN, and international organisations to urgently increase funding for, as well as scale up and supply, maternal health and nutrition programmes.”

    “We know that Sudan is a challenging place to work but waiting for challenges to disappear by themselves is getting nowhere,” says Dr Burkhardt. “For many mothers and children, it’s already too late. Risks must be managed, and solutions found before more lives are lost.”

    Conflict is also driving the maternal and child health crisis as people are displaced and subject to violence. Supply shortages are aggravated by the warring parties which, along with their affiliated armed groups, continue to block or restrict access to lifesaving aid.

    The crisis risks trapping families in protracted cycles of malnutrition, sickness, and deteriorating health that span generations.

    A patient caretaker describes how maternal mortality and malnutrition are interrelated for their family.

    “The mother of the twins died from severe bleeding, leaving behind eight other children,” they say. “My husband and I try to take care of them… we don’t earn enough to feed them. Now we’re 13 in the house. We’re struggling, eating porridge and sauce with a bit of salt, little or no oil, and green leaves.”

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: MSF responds to Israeli bombing in Lebanon

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    Following the widescale Israeli bombings of multiple areas in Lebanon on Monday 23 September, we are gradually stepping up our response to the escalating humanitarian needs. MSF teams are providing general healthcare and essential relief items to displaced people. According to the Ministry of Health, 558 people have been killed and 1,835 injured, with thousands more forced to flee their homes to seek refuge elsewhere in the country.

    Our teams are distributing non-food items, including mattresses and hygiene kits, to collective shelters across the country, and our mobile medical units provide general and mental health care to shelters for those in need. In addition, we are running mental health helplines, offering psychological support to displaced and affected people during this time of distress.

    We continue to coordinate closely with our partners and hospital networks, offering support where possible as the situation develops.

    Since yesterday, some of our staff in southern Lebanon, Beirut, and other parts of the country left their homes, with people fleeing and spending hours in congested traffic as they seek refuge in safer locations. In southern Lebanon and Baalbek-Hermel, areas that continue to experience heavy aerial strikes, MSF staff reported bombardments in close proximity to their homes. Many of our staff there were still sheltering in their homes, while Israeli warplanes continued to fly overhead and throughout the night.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: We won’t turn away when patients need us

    Source: Doctors Without Borders –

    © Médecins Sans Frontières 2024

    Federal tax ID#: 13-3433452

    Unrestricted donations enable MSF to carry out our programs around the world. While we try to honor requests to earmark, should we receive more gifts than we can use for a program, we will reallocate them where the needs are greatest.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: MSF responds to humanitarian needs in Lebanon amid military escalation story Sep 24, 2024

    Source: Doctors Without Borders –

    For example, since yesterday, some of MSF’s staff in south Lebanon, Beirut, and other parts of the country have been forced to leave their homes, with people fleeing and spending hours in traffic in search of safety. In south Lebanon and Baalbek-Hermel—areas that continue to experience heavy aerial strikes—MSF staff reported bombardments in close proximity to their homes. Many staff there were still sheltering in their homes while Israeli warplanes continued to fly overhead and throughout the night.

    MSF is distributing non-food items like mattresses and hygiene kits to collective shelters across the country. MSF mobile medical units are providing primary and mental health care to shelters for those in need. In addition, teams are running mental health helplines, offering psychological support to displaced and affected individuals during this time of distress.

    Following the pager attacks last week, MSF immediately reached out to health actors, including hospitals, to provide support and donate supplies.

    MSF will continue to coordinate closely with partners and hospital networks, offering support where possible as the situation develops.

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  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Sudan: After famine declaration, catastrophic malnutrition in Zamzam camp is only getting worse News Sep 13, 2024

    Source: Doctors Without Borders –

    Prevalent famine conditions in Zamzam camp

    Despite an announcement that brought hope for positive developments—for instance, following Geneva peace talks—no significant amount of humanitarian relief has reached people in Zamzam camp and the nearby, war-stricken city of El Fasher since the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Famine Review Committee concluded that famine conditions were prevalent in the area on August 1 this year. Most supply roads are controlled by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who have made it all but impossible to bring therapeutic food, medicines, and essential supplies into the camp since the intensification of fighting around El Fasher last May.  

    There’s no more time to waste if thousands of preventable deaths are to be avoided. Among the more than 29,000 children under five years old screened last week during a vaccination campaign in Zamzam camp, 10 percent suffer from severe acute malnutrition, a life-threatening condition, while 34.8 percent suffer from global acute malnutrition, which will evolve into a more severe form of malnutrition if not treated effectively and in a timely fashion.  

    “The malnutrition rates found during the screening are massive and likely some of the worst in the world currently,” said Claudine Mayer, MSF emergency medical manager. “It’s even more terrifying as we know from experience that the results are often underestimated in the area when we use only the mid-upper arm circumference criteria like we did here, instead of combining it with measuring weight and height.”

    An MSF mass screening carried out in March 2024 revealed an 8.2 percent rate of severe acute malnutrition and a 29.4 percent rate of global acute malnutrition, which was already twice as high as the 15 percent alert threshold set by the World Health Organization.  

    A nurse attends to a patient in the ER department at the MSF clinic in Zamzam Camp, North Darfur.
    Sudan 2024 © Mohammed Jamal

    Supply blockages and soaring prices exacerbate threat

    The only food available is from pre-existing stocks, which is not sufficient for people living in the area, and food prices are at least three times as high as in the rest of Darfur. Fuel prices are soaring as well, making it very difficult to pump water and run clinics that rely on generators for electricity. Our staff on site report that for many, it’s impossible to obtain more than one meal per day.  

    “In such a dire situation, we should be scaling up our response,” said Mayer. “Instead, running critically low on supplies, we are reaching breaking point and were recently forced to reduce our activity to focus solely on children in the most severe conditions. This means we had to suspend treatment for 2,700 children with less severe forms of malnutrition, and to put an end to consultations provided to adults and children over five years old, who represented thousands of consultations every month.”

    Zamzam camp is estimated to host between 300,000 and 500,000 people, many of them displaced many times over, who are trying to flee the war that has been devastating Sudan since last year. In El Fasher, where many of the displaced used to live, only one hospital remains partially functioning after the others were damaged or destroyed in the conflict.  

    “Due to unconscionable blockages on supplies, we feel like we are leaving behind an increasing number of patients who already have very few options for getting lifesaving medical care,” said Lacharité. “If the roads are not an option for getting massive quantities of urgent supplies into the camp, the United Nations should look at every available option. Delaying these supplies means causing more deaths—thousands of them, among the most vulnerable.” 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: UK: latest Channel crossing deaths are another ‘avoidable tragedy’

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to reports that eight people have died during an attempted crossing of the Channel, Steve Valdez-Symonds, Amnesty International UK’s Refugee and Migrant Rights Director, said:

    “This is yet another appalling and avoidable tragedy and our hearts go out to the families and friends of those who’ve died.

    “These perilous crossings are seemingly becoming more and more dangerous, suggesting smugglers are taking greater chances with people’s lives as they try to evade detection efforts by the UK and French authorities.

    “The Government’s ‘smash the gangs’ slogan and its security-heavy approach is contributing to the death toll because the refusal to establish safe asylum routes means these flimsy vessels controlled by people smugglers are the only real option for desperate people fleeing persecution.

    “Until UK ministers and their counterparts in France start sharing responsibility over the need for safe routes, we should expect this weekend’s tragedy to keep repeating itself time and time again.”

    View latest press releases

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Angola: Immediately release activists wrongfully jailed for one year and denied medical care

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Angolan authorities must immediately release four activists wrongfully detained for one year whose health has drastically deteriorated behind bars, Amnesty International said. 

    Police arrested the four activists on 16 September 2023 in Luanda ahead of a planned protest in solidarity with motorcycle taxi drivers. Since then, Amnesty International has documented significant declines in their health amid a pattern of authorities deliberately denying them medical care at multiple different prisons, including urgent surgery, which amounts to torture and other ill-treatment. 

    “One year in prison simply for peacefully protesting is a travesty of justice. Angolan authorities must release these activists now, especially given their worsening medical conditions,” said Vongai Chikwanda, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for East and Southern Africa. 

    Angolan authorities must release these activists now, especially given their worsening medical conditions.

    Vongai Chikwanda, Amnesty International Deputy Director for East and South Africa

    “Deliberately denying medical care to people in prison is torture. The denial of health care to prisoners also has potentially fatal consequences and may violate the right to life. Not another day should go by with them behind bars or without receiving the medical care they urgently need,” said Vongai Chikwanda. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: UK: Government must stop doing deals to offload asylum responsibilities

    Source: Amnesty International –

    After eight deaths in the Channel this weekend, and ahead of Starmer’s meeting on asylum with Italian Premier Georgia Meloni, Amnesty International UK’s Refugee and Migrant Rights Director, Steve Valdez-Symonds said:

     

    “There should be no question of the UK doing deals to offload its responsibilities onto other countries – not Albania, Rwanda or anywhere else.

     

    “After the Conservative government’s shameful attempt at this, the last thing needed is yet another government pursuing schemes to avoid fulfilling the UK’s comparatively modest refugee obligations rather than showing some leadership and taking responsibility.

     

    “The Government should be trying to restore the UK’s battered reputation on refugee issues by repairing an asylum system that’s been deliberately sabotaged by successive home secretaries stretching back years.

     

    “We need safe asylum routes to help end the exploitative practices of people smugglers, and we need a fair and efficient system for processing people’s asylum claims however they arrive.”

    View latest press releases

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: MSF closes programmes in Russia after instruction to deregister

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    • After receiving a letter from the Ministry of Justice of Russia, MSF had to close our operations in the country.
    • This comes after 32 years of working in Russia.
    • MSF would like to work in Russia again should the necessary conditions be provided by authorities.

    Moscow / Amsterdam – Thirty-two years after starting work in Russia, Médecins Sans Frontières/ (MSF) had to close our operations in the country.  In August this year, we received a letter from the Ministry of Justice of Russia, with the decision to withdraw the affiliate office of the non-profit association ‘Médecins Sans Frontières’ (Netherlands) in Russia from the register of affiliate and representative offices of foreign NGOs.

    “It is with a heavy heart that we have to close our activities in Russia,” says Yashovardhan, head of MSF programmes in the country. “Our organisation’s work is guided by the principles of independence, impartiality, and neutrality, and medical ethics. We provide assistance based on the needs.”

    MSF had been present in Russia since 1992. For more than 30 years, we successfully implemented dozens of programmes, ranging from assistance to the homeless to emergency response to the collaborative work with the Ministry of Health on innovative tuberculosis treatment. We worked in various regions of the country, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, the Kemerovo region, Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, and – more recently – in the Arkhangelsk and Ivanovo regions, as well as in the south of Russia in Belgorod and Rostov-on-Don.

    A significant part of the history of MSF in Russia and the region was linked to the implementation of advanced approaches to the treatment of tuberculosis. MSF has collaborated with the medical academic community of Russia and other countries in the eastern Europe and central Asia to extend effective, innovative treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis to patients in penitentiary and civil sectors across the region.

    In 2004-2017, we worked in close partnership with the Chechen Ministry of Health, providing technical and advisory support to the local health authorities in the treatment of drug-sensitive and drug-resistant tuberculosis in the Chechen Republic. The programme covered different aspects of tuberculosis diagnostics, treatment, laboratory services and health education, as well as adherence counselling and psychosocial support for patients and their families. In 2014, MSF supported the Ministry of Health in introducing new treatment regimens for patients with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis which yielded impressive results giving hope to patients who previously had no treatment options left.

    In 2021, MSF and local health authorities of the Arkhangelsk region in the north of Russia started successful implementation of a nine-month all-oral course of treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis. We enrolled 173 patients on this treatment regimen. And later, in 2023, we started enrolling patients on an even shorter, six months-long, all-oral treatment course that was recommended by the World Health Organization in the updated treatment guidelines in late 2022.

    In Arkhangelsk, and starting from 2024 in Ivanovo, MSF was providing expertise and technical assistance to health authorities with a special emphasis on implementing new treatment regimens and enhancing patients’ adherence and integrating person-centred care. To date, 41 patients in the Arkhangelsk and Ivanovo regions started treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis within this joint programme. The aim of the collaboration was to contribute to the evidence base for more effective, meaning less toxic and person-centred, treatment with a view to scale up these scientifically proven treatment protocols in Russia.

    In Moscow and St. Petersburg since 2020, MSF partnered with two community-based NGOs to support access to general healthcare, as well as testing and treatment for infectious diseases, for people living with HIV and other vulnerable groups, such as migrants, who otherwise struggle to obtain medical assistance. Over 14,000 medical consultations were supported for patients from these vulnerable groups.

    Since the escalation of the armed conflict in Ukraine in 2022, many people have sought safety in Russia, and MSF, in partnership with local NGOs in the Belgorod and Rostov regions in the south of Russia, started providing assistance to those who crossed into Russia from Ukraine and later – with the development of the situation – internally displaced people. Since the start of our response in 2022, more than 52,000 refugees and displaced people were provided with humanitarian aid and more than 15,400 received free medical, mental health and psychosocial support.

    As part of this partnership, we were also planning to respond to the humanitarian and medical needs of the internally displaced people in the Kursk region. MSF continues to stand in solidarity with people impacted by this conflict and remain steadfast in our commitment to provide humanitarian assistance to those in need, irrespective of what side of the front line they are on, should the necessary conditions for our work be provided by relevant authorities.

    “We would like to take the opportunity to thank all our colleagues in Russia for their hard work and commitment to humanitarian values we hold high as an organisation,” says Norman Sitali, MSF operations manager responsible for programmes in Russia. “We are very sad to conclude our programmes in the country as many people in need of medical and humanitarian assistance will now be left without the support we could have provided to them. MSF would like to still work in Russia again, if and when possible”.
     

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    MIL OSI NGO –