IRAQ | what comes after war? A project to provide assistance and rehabilitation to victims of the conflict.
Almost two years after the end of the battle that liberated Mosul, and despite the conclusion of military operations in the area, the Iraqi city remains at the epicentre of a profound humanitarian crisis.
Over two million internally displaced people (IDPs) require assistance, and the zones most heavily affected by the conflict – like Mosul and the areas surrounding the Ninewa Governorate – are still home to populations in need of healthcare assistance and medical support.
Many people were wounded as a result of military operations in Mosul, and are now at risk of becoming the most vulnerable group in Iraqi society.
Anti-personnel mines are used – as they were in the conflict in Mosul – to compromise a country’s ability to recover: having just experienced a war, the state is then tasked with caring for those who, having been left disabled by landmines, are dependent on others and in need of economic and medical support. In many cases, patients are unable to provide for themselves and for their families, and risk being ostracised in their own communities.
The project has two main goals: to offer rehabilitative treatment to patients coming from Mosul, and to guarantee the continuity of rehabilitation services to amputees in the areas of the Ninewa Governorate most affected by the conflict.
The project is managed in close collaboration with the Mosul Rehabilitation Centre, the Ninewa Department of Public Health , and with the local NGO EHAO, responsible for the transfer of patients to our Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration Centre in Sulaymaniyah, where patients are provided with free-of-charge, high-quality prostheses, as well as physiotherapy courses.
This project came about as a response to gaps in the healthcare system that arose following the serious humanitarian crisis caused by the conflict in Mosul, and seeks to achieve both short-term results (immediate treatment) and long-term results (training of local medical staff), in order to guarantee the sustainability of our activities, with a view to eventually handing over responsibilities to local authorities.
EMERGENCY is an independent, non-governmental organization founded in Italy in 1994 to provide free, high-quality medical and surgical treatment to victims of war, landmines and poverty. It promotes a culture of peace, solidarity and respect for human rights. Since 1994, it has worked in 18 countries, treating over 10 million patients.