Iraq experienced a profound escalation of conflict as a result of the US invasion in March 2003. But the country has endured a complex array of challenges over the course of these twenty years, causing grave humanitarian consequences. MSF has provided medical aid in the country for the first time in 1988. However, MSF’s medical humanitarian assistance to Iraq scaled up after 2003 and in response to the different crisis the country has gone through since then.

From 2003 to 2023, MSF has been constantly supporting Iraqis raise up from their traumas. Mostly by running medical activities on the ground in areas where needs are highest, but also through remote support when access has proven to be difficult to the country. For MSF, an organisation known for its field work close to those in need, it was the first time in its history to have to treat patients far from their homes. Not because the patients were displaced, but because the security situation in Iraq was so critical it was not possible for MSF to safely work inside the country.

Opened in 2006, the MSF Reconstructive Surgery Hospital in Amman has always been there for Iraqis impacted by the trauma of war and displacement. Bearing witness to their suffering and rebuilding their hope and well-being.

Dr Rasheed Fakhri, MSF’s Regional Surgical Coordinator takes us through his journey as an Iraqi surgeon who had to flee the country like many others, only to find himself joining a new MSF hospital in Amman. From there, he treated people from his own country who have been impacted by all the crisis that struck Iraq following the 2003 war.