DR Congo: Red Cross evacuates 65 war patients from Masisi

7 May 2012

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Red Cross evacuates 65 war patients from Masisi

Geneva/Kinshasa (ICRC) – On 3 May, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) evacuated 40 injured people, including 27 who were seriously injured, from Saké and Kirolirwe in the Masisi territory of North Kivu province. The Red Cross Society of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has evacuated 25 other casualties from Saké since 30 April. The patients were all transferred to the CBCA civilian hospital in N'Dosho or to the Katindo military hospital in Goma.

"It is imperative that the ICRC, the Congolese Red Cross and health-care services have access to all victims, no matter who they are," said Frédéric Boyer, the head of the ICRC sub-delegation in Goma. "The cooperation of the authorities and of all parties to the conflict is essential if we are to reach the casualties and evacuate them quickly."

The 65 evacuees – weapon bearers and civilians injured in recent clashes in Masisi – are still receiving treatment. The ICRC monitors their condition every day in the CBCA hospital. It recently stepped up its support for the hospitals to which the war patients were taken and for two hospitals in Kichanga, further north, by providing them with more surgical supplies and medicines.

"The coordination of our activities with those of medical facilities in Goma and the joint effort to provide medical care for the wounded have been outstanding," said Hugues Katembo, the provincial secretary of the North Kivu Red Cross. "To carry on with this life-saving work, it is essential that the red cross emblem be respected at all times."

Since the beginning of the year, the ICRC has evacuated 127 war casualties and provided medical care for 156. In addition, it has supplied medicines and other items for the treatment of 110 others in the two Kivu provinces.

The ICRC and the Red Cross Society of the Democratic Republic of the Congo are neutral and impartial. Their staff on the ground respond to the most urgent human needs, in particular by providing health care, restoring contact between family members and delivering aid.

For further information, please visit our website: www.icrc.org

ENDS

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