Baladi News – Damascus Countryside (Hiba Mohammed)
Medical agencies operating in Madaya town of Damascus countryside confirmed that fetal mortality increased due to the shortage of necessary nutrients and vitamins. This shortage is attributed to the tight blockade imposed by Hezbollah militia for three years.
Last Tuesday, an embryo less than four months old died because of the deficiency of nutrients and vitamins necessary for the continuation of pregnancy, marking the tenth abortion since the blockade of Hezbollah started.
Omar Mohammed, a Syrian journalist, said to Baladi News, “Today, Madaya bid farewell to the tenth embryo who died because of Hezbollah blockade on the town. Previously, nine babies died shortly after birth due to shortage of medicines and nutrients, especially calcium and vitamins.”
Mohammed added that “all the besieged people in Madaya and the neighboring towns suffer from malnutrition and emaciation. The medical agency in Madaya called upon all the international agencies to interfere immediately and provide medical aid and foodstuffs after the run off of the reliefs that were entered more than two months ago. The agency is afraid that the citizens will strive again and resort to eating tree leaves.”
The journalist indicated that the statistics office in Al-Zabadani has previously documented the death of 193 civilians, including women and children, due to the tight besiege by the forces of Hezbollah and the Syrian regime on Madaya. Meanwhile, UN aid is too little to counteract the besieging policy pursued by Hezbollah and Assad’s regime.
On the other hand, UNICEF emphasized early this year that it observed cases of acute malnutrition among children in Madaya. The UN also called for stopping the brutal tactics of besieging cities in Syria, and declared that over 4 million Syrians live in blockaded areas that are inaccessible for reliefs.
It is noteworthy that Assistant Secretary General of the UN pointed out that nearly 37,000 Syrians in Homs governorate are in an urgent need for immediate assistance.