To protect the safety of patients and staff, medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) is reported to have temporarily closed its hospital located in Cite Soleil, a neighborhood in Haiti‘s capital. As outlined by Reuters, the closure was due to the threat posed by gang violence in the area.
The move comes following a recent surge in violence from armed gangs in Port-au-Prince, with the groups expanding their territory to cover new areas.
“We are living scenes of warfare just meters (yards) from the establishment,” said Vincent Harris, MSF Medical Advisor, in a statement. “Our hospital has not been directly targeted but we have been a collateral victim of the fighting since the hospital found itself on the frontline.”
According to Marcou, a child who was on oxygen died in a security room, where patients are sent for protection from gunfire around the building. Additionally, a 70-year-old man was found shot across the street from the hospital as he tried to cross the road.
MSF is continuing to operate in Haiti’s capital, running a center for trauma and bullet wounds, as well as clinics for pregnant women and babies, emergency centers for serious accidents and cholera treatment centers.
Marcou emphasized that MSF is not leaving Haiti but could not keep operations open if staff and patients are not safe.