Interview Dr Yacine Haffaf, surgeon back from Hodeidah. EN

MSF252426

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INTERIEW: Yacine Haffaf, surgeon back from Hodeidah, Yemen (Dec 2018)

Interview Dr Yacine Haffaf, surgeon back from Hodeidah. INTER

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Interview du Dr Yacine Haffaf, chorurgien de retour de Hodeidah FR

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Interview: Yacine Haffaf - ARABIC

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Unique Identifier Code / URN MSF252426

Date taken / Date Recorded 05/12/2018 12:00 AM

Country Yemen

Commissioning section MSF-FRANCE

Photographer / videographer / producer Armelle Loiseau

Usage Rights (MSF) External Media, MSF Fundraising, MSF Publications, Social Media

Formal Consent Copy available no

Editor's rating ★★★★ (E)

Video format h264 (Main) (avc1 / 0x31637661)

Duration 3m46s

Maximum Size 1920px × 1080px 361.11 MB

Additional Information / Shotlist One of our first patients, a farmer, found a metal object in his field. He picked it up and it exploded in his hands.

Back from the field – Yacine Haffaf

I’m a general surgeon. I work on the island of Réunion, I’ve just finished a short assignment in Hodeidah.

Since November 1st,
fighting has intensified in Hodedidah

between Saudi and Emirati-led
coalition backed forces
and Ansar Allah troops

Almost every evening, it was less common during the day, we could hear shooting not far away from 8pm or 9pm. To me and the MSF project coordinators present, it sounded close, 1 or 2 km away, knowing that the frontline nearby. Some nights it was very intense. One night, we had to go down to the ‘safe room’ in the basement. We took shelter there one night because we could hear the shooting, and the roof of the office where we were lodging was actually hit. The next morning we found large bullets embedded in the wood. Fortunately it was good quality wood.

MSF is working in Al Salakhana Hospital
in northeast Hodeidah

Half of the war-wounded
treated in this hospital
are women and children

Among the patients with gunshots wounds, some would appear to be victims of falling bullets, as if it were ‘happy shooting’, shots are fired into the air and the bullets left to fall. When those bullets drop and hit someone, they cause severe injury - wounds to the limbs, the abdomen, skull fractures… They cause major injuries, even when they’re at the end of their trajectory, because they’re large calibre bullets. All the bullets we’ve extracted or seen on X-rays are 5-6 cm long, and heavy. They’re large bullets.

One of our first patients, a farmer, found a metal object in his field. He picked it up and it exploded in his hands. He suffered severe injuries to his hands and legs. His feet were spared but both his lower legs were badly injured. We tried to save them but they got infected, so we had to amputate both legs. We did our best to save his hands too, so that, in time, he would be able move around using crutches. And then, low and behold, he got peritonitis and we had to operate again. He put up a good fight, but it was too much for him. I left the project a couple of days ago, but I just found out he died. The amputations and the repeated surgery, it was too much for him, his body couldn’t take anymore… He passed away.

Fortunately we haven’t had any such cases among the the kids we’ve seen. Amputation is, of course, a surgical failure. A real disaster. But on a kid, it’s the utmost torment.

In November,
MSF teams treated
more than 750 war-wounded
from Hodeidah

In response to the influx of war-wounded,
MSF has increased bed capacity from 133 to 178
in its hospitals in Aden, Hodeidah and Mocha