In the early hours of Saturday 3 April, a clearly marked MSF ambulance, travelling from Rokero to Al-Fasher Hospital in Sudan was carjacked. The passengers, who included a pregnant woman being referred to hospital for emergency treatment, had all their belongings stolen and were left by the roadside in a remote location.
All four passengers - the patient, their caretaker, a midwife and driver - are now safe. The patient was able to receive the treatment she needed after the team were found and she was able to continue her journey to the hospital.
Monica Camacho, MSF Desk Manager for East Africa, said:
We condemn this attack on healthcare in the strongest possible terms. It is shocking that anyone would attack an ambulance which was carrying a pregnant woman to hospital for emergency treatment. Fortunately, the patient – an expectant mother and her unborn child - did not suffer medical consequences as a result of this attack.
MSF has now been forced to stop all referrals to Al-Fasher hospital until we can guarantee the safety of patients and of medical staff. We are calling on all parties in the area to respect the delivery of much-needed medical humanitarian aid.
In Rokero, a mountainous area of Darfur State called Jebel Marra, MSF provides medical care in a Ministry of Health run hospital. We manage the inpatient department, emergency, maternity and delivery rooms. MSF also runs an observation room where patients can be kept under the watch of medical staff and an inpatient therapeutic feeding centre for malnourished children. Referrals to Al-Fasher are done for those needed more advanced medical care than can be provided at the facility.