PHA-Exchange> Belgian doctor reports from Baghdad

[Bert De Belder]

Dr. Geert Van Moorter on the phone from Baghdad, March 24, 10:25 p.m.
 

Painting a smile on the face of an injured child.
 

"I just called to say that (Dr.) Colette (Moulaert) and me are still alive. Actually we are fine, although we're beginning to feel tired.

 

Today we went to the crater a cruise missile made in the middle of a residential area. A 'mistake' of course. The crater had a diameter of 15 meters and was about ten meters deep. In a perimeter of 100 meters windows were shattered and doors were blown off their hinges. A neighbor, who miraculously survived, cursed Bush and said: "Now we are in the same boat as the Palestinians. Every time their houses are destroyed, they are repairing them again. We'll do the same, up to ten times if necessary!"

 

The people's morale remains high. The first two days of the attacks the population of Baghdad was nervous because of the American propaganda claiming a swift victory. But now the US troops apparently have a hard time and Iraq's resistance shows to be strong the people are beaming with confidence. "Let them come," they say, "They'll regret it!" Still I'm afraid the US might have some dirty tricks up its sleeve and make many casualties in Baghdad. Out of frustration maybe.

 

We went back to the Yarmouk hospital. There were some 30 new patients compared to yesterday. I brought drawings for the injured children, made by Belgian schoolchildren. A colorful drawing of the globe with the slogan "Peace, No War!" painted a smile on the face of an injured girl. In the emergency room the anesthesiologist said they still had enough supplies for the time being. But they only have 4 respirators for the heavily injured. We also met a neurosurgeon who rushes back and forth between several hospitals to perform brain surgery. He had been working through the night. The bloodstains were still on his glasses! Tomorrow we'll go to another hospital and pay a visit to the Unicef staff."
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