Despite repeated requests made by the residents to the Iraqi government, the UN and the US, the residents’ medical facilities in Ashraf have not been transferred to Camp Liberty
NCRI – In the morning, on Saturday April 13, 2013, Camp Liberty resident Mohammad Hossein Barzmehri died in the Iraqi clinic in the camp.
Mr. Barzmehri suddenly fainted at 7:45 am (Baghdad local time). He was immediately taken by his friends to the Iraqi clinic in the camp. But the clinic was not at all prepared at the time. The clinic generator was not on, and none of the electrical facilities worked.
Residents quickly turned on the generator and took the patient to the emergency room. But there was no Ambu bag, Airway, Electric Shock and Suction devices and others facilities needed. The residents transferred electric shock and suction devices from ambulance in the clinic to the emergency room, but they did not work either.
Finally, the patient died before minimum medical procedures being performed on him. Iraqi clinic physician has stated stroke as the cause of death.
Resident’s physicians in Camp Liberty believe the cause of his death was similar to Bardia Mostofian, essentially due to stress and extraordinary pressures in Camp Liberty, particularly because round the clock for a period of 34 days after the missile attack on the camp Mr Barzmehri had been on the side of critically injured resident trying to save him.
Hamid Rabi died of the wounds of the attack because of negligences by Martin Kobler and his wife, the German Ambassador to Iraq in transfering him to Germany where he had permanent residency.
Mohammad Hossein Barzmehri, 61, a civil engineer educated in Washington DC, spent nearly 30 years in the ranks of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran to fight for the freedom of the Iranian people.
He is the thirteenth PMOI member that has died due to medical siege and blocking residents’ access to medical services.
Prior to him, Mansour Koufe’i, passed away on Tuesday March 13, 2013, due to lack of minimum facilities in the Iraqi clinic.
Another resident, Behrouz Rahimian, was slain on December 24, 2012, due to medical negligence.
During missile attack on Liberty on February 9, the Iraqi clinic did not have any reaction. Mehdi Abed who was wounded in the attack, was martyred on his way to hospital in the absence of basic necessities and two and a half hours delay in the transportation.
The National Council of Resistance in its statement of March 15, 2013 said: “On the one hand, Liberty residents are denied minimum medical facilities which they had in their own clinic at Ashraf and the GOI prevents their transfer to Liberty, and on the other, the Iraqi clinic in Liberty lacks minimum necessities and preliminary equipment needed to take care of emergency cases, and the residents have no free access to medical services.”
“This clinic does not have succion apparatus, airway tube, laryngoscope set and endotracheal tube, D.C shock device, Adrenalin and Zantac injection, IV tube, and many other requirements that could be found in any small clinic,” statement said.
On March 26, the representative of the residents of the camp in a meeting with camp management with the presence of UNAMI representatives and the representative of the prime minister’s office reiterated on the lack of basic medical equipment.
The representative of the Iraqi government, after receiving list of shortages, said the health ministry would provide them. Residents on April 1 once again sent a list of shortages for the emergency room to UNAMI and they have continuously followed up on this issue but to date no action has been taken.
UNAMI’s chief, Martin Kobler deceitfully tried to portray the Iraqi clinic a well-equipped medical center. UNAMI under him in an entirely false report in December of last year wrote: “There is a medical facility with an Iraqi physician at Camp Liberty. Ambulances are on alert around the clock.”
On February 6, Kobler impudently wrote in his letter, “Sometimes liberty residents are not aware of the medical support offered by the Iraqi clinic. … Residents think that the government of Iraq restricts the medical service. … I would like to request you to arrange that every resident well informed about the Iraqi medical facilities and the provided services in the camp, should they choose to go.”
Considering the medical situation at Liberty and high air pollution due to infrastructure conditions, viral fever and eye infection epidemic is on the rise and the number of patients with viral fever has reached 900 and those with eye infection are 450.
The Iranian resistance emphasizes that oppressive siege imposed on Camp Liberty residents is a clear example of crimes against humanity that their perpetrators and facilitators have to be held accounted for.
The Iranian resistance calls on the United States and the United Nations for urgent action to end inhumane medical siege in Liberty and for allowing the transfer of medical equipment from Ashraf to Liberty and for the residents’ free access to medical services in Iraq at their own cost.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
April 13, 2013
