London, 9 August 2013: The medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has expressed its sadness and outrage at an armed attack on one of its vehicles near Juba, South Sudan, on Monday 5 August which resulted in the death of a staff member two days later. A second staff member remains seriously injured.
“Joseph was an excellent colleague,” said Raphael Gorgeu, Country Manager for MSF in South Sudan. “His personality and positive attitude will be missed by the whole team. His tragic death is a terrible loss for his family, for MSF and for his country.”
While the exact circumstances of this attack are not yet clear, the car in which the two staff members were travelling was clearly marked as belonging to MSF. The attack took place on a main road outside the capital city, Juba.
“We have requested the authorities to investigate the brutal attack that resulted in the killing of our colleague,” said Marcel Langenbach, MSF Director of Operations.
“We want to emphasize the need to respect international humanitarian law and on the obligation to ensure the protection of humanitarian workers, their property and health facilities.”
MSF has been working in South Sudan for over thirty years. Last year MSF provided 702,634 outpatient consultations, admitted 34,324 patients to hospital, treated 141,525 people for malaria, assisted 10,918 births, treated 29,018 children for malnutrition, performed 3,257 surgeries and vaccinated 253,237 children against measles.
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Should you have any questions, please contact Sandra Smiley, MSF UK Press Officer, on +44 7889 178 472.