Kidnapping of medical workers in Syria on rise
▶ Doctors and pharmacists are top targets for militias and gangs but, with many still missing, it is not all about money
Militias and gangs are kidnapping medical workers at an increasing rate in Syria’s rebel-controlled north-west.
Doctors and pharmacists appear most vulnerable, with at least 12 being abducted in Idlib province this year. But paramedics and administrative health workers have also gone missing, activists and rights groups said.
The step up in kidnappings has become one of the main concerns for civilians since Turkey and Russia agreed on September 17 to establish a buffer zone in Idlib.
The agreement averted a regime offensive, which would probably have started a humanitarian catastrophe.
Activists say the agreement has largely held so far. But with Hayat Tahrir Al Sham – an Al Qaeda offshoot – still the dominant force in north-west Syria, medical workers say they have to work cautiously.
A monitor from one aid group said that Hayat Tahrir was mainly to blame for the disappearance of doctors and pharmacists. Others say bandits and gangs were responsible for most of the kidnappings.
The latest victim was a pharmacist, Ibrahim Radhwan, whose job was to monitor pharmacies across the province. He was abducted by gunmen on October 31 while making his rounds.
That day his family received a message from his captors, demanding a $1 million (Dh3.67m) ransom for Mr Radhwan’s release.
“Sell everything we have, including our businesses,” he said in a voice message. “We just have one week to hand over the money. If you don’t co-operate they will make my life a living hell.
“It’s really cold and they told me that if my family doesn’t pay then I won’t see the light.”
Mr Radhwan had still not been released yesterday, more than a week after his capture.
The head of the health directorate in Idlib, Safwat Shaikhuny, said that most kidnappers demand an unrealistic ransom but often negotiate with the families of captives.
Some people paid as much as $100,000 to secure the release of their loved ones, Mr Shaikhuny said.
“In most cases, an agreement is always reached and a ransom is paid. But nobody ever finds out the identities of the kidnappers,” he told The National.
Dr Mohammad Katoub, the advocacy officer for the Syrian American Medical Society that supports healthcare centres in rebel-controlled Syria, said the high salaries of doctors and pharmacists made them a target.
Most earn between $1,000 and $1,500 a month, which is more than 10 times the average wage in north-west Syria.
But money might not be the only motive. The abduction of health workers also appears to be part of a broader campaign to silence prominent activists and aid workers.
“The kidnapping of wellknown doctors was definitely premeditated,” Dr Katoub said.
“It’s clear that these kidnappings are becoming systematic. Medical workers in the north-west are more in danger from armed groups than at any other point in the conflict.”
Six doctors and pharmacists are still missing after being abducted in Idlib this year.
Pharmacist Najdet Sallat said that he was lucky not to be one them. On May 10, he was kidnapped by a gang and held captive for four days, during which he was beaten and subjected to electric shocks.
The torment ended after his family paid a ransom of $18,000. Fearing he might be kidnapped again, Mr Sallat said that he no longer strayed far from his home or pharmacy.
“I gave up my work as a monitor,” he said. “I’m just not free to roam Idlib like I was before. My mother and I are very scared. I don’t want to relive another kidnapping.”
Armed groups are also abducting medical workers in the western countryside of Aleppo.
Paramedic Alaa Alawi was snatched two months ago, yet he escaped on October 19 after Hayat Tahrir raided the house where he was held captive, said Abd Al Nasser, the head of the health directorate in the Aleppo countryside.
Many medical workers have thought about resigning because of the risk.
Some aid organisations said that they might close their relief services if abductions persisted.
But Mr Al Nasser stressed that hospitals and clinics could not afford to lose more staff because centres in the north-west were already undermanned.
“The kidnapping of doctors, pharmacists and other health workers affects our work,” he said.
“We already have very few high-skilled medical workers, yet these kidnappings are creating further chaos.”
The abduction of health workers also appears to be part of a broader campaign to silence prominent activists and aid workers