On the night between August 17th and 18th, Magumeri hospital, 40 km from Maiduguri, capital of Borno state in north-eastern Nigeria, was attacked and set on fire during an armed conflict.
Our team is working to assess the dynamics of the incident and the overall security situation in an extremely vulnerable area, characterized by lack of services, and recently affected by a further influx of circa 5,000 displaced people. We are deeply concerned by this act of violence against a public health facility that INTERSOS has been supporting since 2018, after having financed its progressive renovation.
The structure suffered extensive damage: the interiors were destroyed and with them the medical equipment, the roofs collapsed and the walls were damaged. Our primary concern is for the population living in the area: 140,000 people which have no other hospital to tend to their needs. In recent years, thanks to the support of Intersos, Magumeri hospital has guaranteed primary care and emergency intervention, gynecological and pediatric assistance, safe births, treatment of malnutrition, and assistance to roughly 20,000 children each year.
On World Humanitarian Day, we condemn any violence against humanitarian action, as we always have. We are committed to stay close to the people we assist, whose survival and decent living conditions largely depend on the possibility of accessing humanitarian aid. #notatarget