SOMALIA: ICRC & SRCS Calls for Restraint
The AlertNet reports:Â Â
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Somali Red Crescent Society (SRCS), alarmed by the heavy loss of life and the suffering of civilians in the upsurge of violent and indiscriminate armed clashes in Mogadishu, call again for restraint in the fighting. On 25 May hospitals in Mogadishu, in particular the SRCS-run Keysaney hospital and the Medina hospital, admitted more than 150 wounded, including women and children. While there is no independent confirmation of the figures, it is estimated that dozens of people have been killed. Since clashes first erupted on 18 February there have been more than 300 deaths, and 1,500 wounded have been treated in hospital. The ICRC and the SRCS urge all the warring parties to comply with the rules of international humanitarian law and to take constant care in the conduct of military operations to safeguard the lives and dignity of the wounded, the sick, prisoners and the civilian population. Â
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