STC Acting President Discusses Expansion of MSF’s Medical Interventions in Governorates of the South

Mr. Ali Abdullah Al-Kathiri, Acting President of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and Chairman of the National Assembly, received today, Monday, at his office in the capital, Aden, Mr. Oliver Marteau, deputy head of mission for the French Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders-MSF).

At the beginning of the meeting, which was attended by lawyer Niran Souqi, head of the Humanitarian Aid and Relief Commission (HARC), assisting the Presidium of the STC, Mr. Al-Kathiri warmly welcomed Mr. Marteau's visit to the capital, Aden, praising the qualitative interventions of MSF in various medical aspects, its unlimited support to hospitals, health centers and facilities, and the high-quality patient care along with the exceptional quality of its services.

The meeting explored ways to expand the scope of medical interventions to include high-need areas in the governorates of the South and the rest of the liberated areas, given the continuous deterioration in health conditions, in addition to scaling up the medical support to overwhelmed hospitals and health centers in the capital, Aden, which are operating beyond capacity due to ongoing displacement from Houthi militia-controlled areas.

The meeting also touched on the importance of MSF's emergency response in supporting health facilities, supplying medicine to health centers specialized in treating fevers, cholera, infectious diseases, and epidemic outbreaks in various governorates, and ensuring medical needs are met, in addition to doubling medical support to the contact areas and frontlines adjacent to the Houthi militia, surgical intervention, and psychological support for affected individuals and families.

Al-Kathiri reaffirmed the STC's readiness to ease all challenges that may hinder the MSF's work in various governorates, noting the importance of joint coordination and cooperation with the HARC, the Department of International Organizations and Human Rights in the STC's Foreign and Expatriates Affairs Authority (FEAA), and local authorities in the governorates to deliver effective medical assistance and reach as many residents as possible.

For his part, Mr. Marteau outlined MSF France’s ongoing medical and humanitarian programs, praising the efforts that have been made by the STC and the facilities provided to the mission to expand its activities and operations in the capital, Aden, and the rest of the governorates.

The meeting was attended by Mohammed Abdul-Rahim, Deputy Project Coordinator of the MSF mission, Mohammed A-Jifri, Director of Public Relations for the mission, Dr. Najeeb Qayid Fare'a, Director of the International Organizations and Human Rights Department at the FEAA, and his deputy, Aseel Mohammed.