Washington Post: Healthcare System in Syria at Risk of Collapse with Western Aid Cuts

The American newspaper Washington Post has warned that the healthcare system in Syria is beginning to collapse following reductions in external American and European aid.

This comes after the United States, the largest donor to Syria providing over $18 billion in aid over 14 years of war, froze all its foreign aid programs after the administration of President Donald Trump halted the work of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).


Michelle Colombel from the French organization "Medecins du Monde" (MdM), which operates more than 24 health centers in northern Syria, said that the reduction in American and European funding was "catastrophic," especially in the northern areas where millions of displaced people have settled.

She explained to the newspaper that MdM does not directly receive funding from the United States, but it was affected by the loss of its funding partners, leading them to close their clinics and increase pressure on the organization's centers.

The newspaper continues: In the Azaz area north of Aleppo, the organization recorded 20 severe malnutrition cases in the past three months, with the depletion of the stock of the nutritional food for children (Plumpy’Nut) provided by the organization "Save the Children." The organization stated in April that funding cuts forced them to close 40% of nutrition programs in Syria.


It added that "more than 416,000 children in Syria are now at risk of severe malnutrition following the sudden halt of external aid."

MdM also had to close or suspend several projects, including primary care centers, support programs for mothers and children, and food distribution initiatives.

In the town of Kafr Takharim in northwestern Syria, MdM was only serving a third of mothers and children three months ago. Now, after the suspension of activities by other organizations, it is providing services to most of the town's residents.

Medical authorities warned in May that 172 health facilities in northwestern Syria are at risk of closure due to funding cuts, which could deprive 4.24 million people of emergency healthcare, maternal and child care, and treatment for chronic diseases.


In northeastern Syria, 23 health facilities have been suspended, and 68 others are at risk of closure, according to a report by the health cluster of the World Health Organization.

With increasing closures, cases are piling up in the remaining facilities. The staff at Al-Kasra Hospital in Deir ez-Zor reported a 10% increase in patient visits over the past five months, but they were forced to close a wing dedicated to treating malnourished children in April after the funding from the USAID-supported organization stopped.

Hassan Al-Ali, a coordinator at the hospital, said that three children deteriorated after treatment was stopped, forcing their families to bring them back to the hospital in critical condition.

Kidney failure cases are also escalating. The three kidney dialysis centers run by MdM are the only ones operating in northeastern Syria, according to the organization.

Kidney doctor Ahmed Aswad from Abu Hamam Hospital confirmed that some patients were forced to leave without treatment, while some dialysis machines started to malfunction, increasing pressure on the remaining devices.

If conditions continue to deteriorate, patients may have to travel long distances in search of treatment or resort to expensive private clinics. Aswad said, "If things get worse, there will be deaths."