Empty Benghazi hospital being looted

By Adam Ali.

Benghazi, 18 December 2014:

Benghazi’s abandoned Hawari Hospital is being plundered by thieves. The management has appealed to the Red . . .[restrict]Crescent to help move the expensive medical equipment that remains to a place of safety.

Hospital spokesman Hani Arabi told the Libya Herald this evening that looters had already struck at the hospital which was abandoned in November because of the fighting around it. Until it was attacked by armed thieves, the small medical centre had continued to operate, even though the rest of the hospital had been closed. After that raid, the centre too was shut down.

The hospital management wanted to move equipment such as scanners and life support machines into secure storage until the hospital reopens for patients and guards return.

Arabi said that managers had asked the Red Crescent to help in the evacuation of the sensitive equipment but had yet to receive a definite response. [/restrict]