Yefren Update, April 25, 2011
Yefren Update – April 25, 2011 – 22:02-22:26
Chat with Dr Majdob, who has assessed the situations at hospitals in Libya’s Western Mountain region, including Nalut, Jadu and Zintan, and has been speaking with his contacts in the Western Mountains tonight.
Question: Have you been able to confirm the rumor of the last doctor in Yefren being killed?
Dr Majdob: No, but regarding the situation in Yefren, it is worse than just the report of the doctor being killed, it appears that the town is now a ghost town, as more than 80% of population has left and the hospital basically does not function at all. Nobody has been able to enter the town for the last 24 hrs. If no dramatic change happens in the near future, we are expecting the rest of the area to fare the same as Yefren.
Dr Majdob: No, but regarding the situation in Yefren, it is worse than just the report of the doctor being killed, it appears that the town is now a ghost town, as more than 80% of population has left and the hospital basically does not function at all. Nobody has been able to enter the town for the last 24 hrs. If no dramatic change happens in the near future, we are expecting the rest of the area to fare the same as Yefren.
Question: OK, so what do you think we can do to help (besides stopping Gaddafi)?
Dr Majdob: I think there is nothing we can do for those poor people at this stage, just be prepared for more refugees.
Dr Majdob: I think there is nothing we can do for those poor people at this stage, just be prepared for more refugees.
Question: Are you also getting information about the refugee situation on the border/in Tunis?
Dr Majdob: The last figure I got from the Tunisian authorities is between 4000-5000.
Dr Majdob: The last figure I got from the Tunisian authorities is between 4000-5000.
Question: When was that?
Dr Majdob: That was in the last 10 days. As you know, the main road connecting Yefren to Tunisia has been unsecured for the last 2 days, so there is a huge number still inside Libya.
Dr Majdob: That was in the last 10 days. As you know, the main road connecting Yefren to Tunisia has been unsecured for the last 2 days, so there is a huge number still inside Libya.
Question: Are there still snipers there? Do you have specifics on the issues on that road?
Dr Majdob: Now Yefren is completely occupied by Gaddafi forces; it has been explained to me as another Zawia.
Dr Majdob: Now Yefren is completely occupied by Gaddafi forces; it has been explained to me as another Zawia.
Question: Did those 80% flee safely to the border?
Dr Majdob: Not all of them.
Dr Majdob: Not all of them.
Question: So, have all the doctors been killed?
Dr Majdob: To be honest, I can only say they have disappeared, or are not working.
Dr Majdob: To be honest, I can only say they have disappeared, or are not working.
Question: OK, I would like to get this news out tonight but I will also talk to my colleagues about other media coverage. Do you think you can write something up later? If not, we can just at least put out the info you gave me here on the Libya Alhurra blog and on twitter. I have heard that journalists are heading to the region but don’t know if that is true, and if so, where or how exactly. Let us hope so.
Dr Majdob: I am trying to contact other people on ground to have more accurate information, and I will keep you updated.
Dr Majdob: I am trying to contact other people on ground to have more accurate information, and I will keep you updated.
