OPERATION 'INTERNS FOR HOPE'
ISRAELI MEDICAL AID FOR RWANDAN REFUGEES IN ZAIRE
1. On July 22, 1994, the Israeli government decided to send emergency
medical aid to the Rwandan refugees. The aid comprises medical personnel
and equipment, including an IDF field hospital, flown to Zaire by Israeli
Air Force airlift. The relief delegation is headed by Environment Minister
Yossi Sarid.
2. It was decided to set up the field hospital in Goma in Zaire, where the
UNHCR center and the logistics base of the French force ('Operation
Turqoise') are located. The number of Rwandan refugees in the area of Goma
is estimated at between one and two million.
3. The Israeli representative to the U.N. institutions in Genena
maintained regular contact with the civilian-military coordinating team of
the UNHCR, from which it received permission for the Israeli operation,
and made the necessary landing arrangements in Goma. Parallel to this, the
IDF received the necessary permission through international military
liaison. The Israeli embassies in Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Asmera and Cairo
obtained the flyover rights from those countries on the airlift's course.
The Israeli ambassador in Kinshasa obtained the permission of the Zaire
authorities for the arrival of the IDF delegation, including uniforms and
arms.
4. The Situation Center and the Israeli Foreign Ministry received many
calls from citizens and organizations prepared to volunteer for the
operation, and to take in or even adopt orphaned children from Rwanda.
5. On July 24, a coordination meeting was held at the Foreign Ministry.
The possibility of integrating volunteers from non-governmental
organizations, such as Magen David Adom, at a later stage, was raised.
6. On July 25 at 6:00 A.M., the first Israeli plane landed in Goma and was
received by the head of the regional Zaire authorities and the Head of
Protocol of the Zaire Foreign Ministry. With the help of the UNHCR,
locations were found for the hospitalization center as well as for the
emergency ambulatory center. The heads of the Israeli delegation later met
with the Prime Minister of Zaire.
7. The Israeli delegation comprises about 50 medical staff and an
additional 30 auxilliary staff. Eight Hercules planes brought the
delegation to Goma (one carrying only water for the use of the delegation
itself). This is the largest medical aid mission ever sent abroad by the
IDF.
8. The field hospital, once set up, will contain 120 beds. The Israeli
team is so organized that it can function independently, without outside
assistance. The current supplies are menat to last for two weeks, but will
be replenished if necessary.
9. The continuation of the operation will be evaluated at the end of the
initial two-week period, taking into consideration the situation in the
field. A new team will be sent if conditions warrant it.
10. The Israeli team worked through the night, and the preparation of the
field hospital is almost completed. Treatment already began today, July
26. Aside from the local hospital in Goma, the Israeli operating rooms are
the only ones in the area.
11. The French organization Medecins Sans Frontieres operating in the area
has already asked to coordinate efforts with the Israeli delegation.
Environment Minister Sarid will meet this afternoon with the heads of the
French unit which is coordinating all French activity in the area, both
military and medical.
12. Following is a list of IDF medical aid missions in the past:
- End of 1979 - A small team was sent to Cambodia, where it treated
refugees on the Thailand border. The team spent a month and a half
there.
- 1986 - A Medical Corps mission was sent to Cameroun to treat those
injured in the volcanic eruption there. The 16 member team spent
two weeks on the site and treated thousands of people suffering
from respiratory problems and chemical burns.
- December 1988 - A medical team went to Armenia following the
earthquake there. Some 2,500 people were treated at the Israeli
field hospital.
- June 1989 - A team of six persons from the Medical Corps spent ten
days in Moscow, treating those injured in the Ural Mountains train
accident.
- December 1989 - Medical aid was sent to Romania.
- April 1991 - Medical aid was sent to the Kurds in Turkey.
- August 1992 - Medical aid was sent to Bosnia.