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Petition : Demand protection for healthcare in conflicts

Demand protection for healthcare in conflicts

Attacks on hospitals are never acceptable. No excuses, no exceptions. That's why MSF is calling on governments to uphold International Humanitarian Law.

© MSF

Hospitals, healthcare workers and patients are not a target. 

Agree? Sign the petition↓

Your support enables us to call on governments to:

  • Condemn all attacks on healthcare, loudly and without delay

  • Stand up for the protection of health facilities and health workers in all conflicts

  • Uphold the core principles of international law and stand against any erosion of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) for political or military gain

By adding your voice to our petition, you will help us make a case to the UK Government to protect hospitals, staff and patients around the world

Why is MSF launching this campaign?

 

Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is an international humanitarian organisation providing life-saving medical care in more than 70 countries.

From Gaza to Sudan, hospitals and health workers are under attack. Doctors and nurses are targeted. Patients are killed. Clinics and hospitals are destroyed.

And it's happening more often than ever.

The past couple of years have seen a sharp rise in the number of humanitarian workers killed while trying to provide aid and healthcare.

But hospitals are not battlefields.

Targeting hospitals and healthcare workers violates international law—and strikes at the heart of humanity.

What should Governments do for International Humanitarian Law?

Le 20 novembre, cinq véhicules de MSF stationnés devant notre clinique de la ville de Gaza ont été détruits lors d’une intervention des forces israéliennes. La clinique a également été endommagée et une partie du bâtiment a été la proie des flammes pendant quelques heures. Les véhicules et la clinique étaient clairement identifiés par le logo de MSF. Bande de Gaza, Palestine. Novembre, 2023 © MSF

Hospitals, healthcare staff and patients are not targets.

I’m signing the petition

Attacks on the healthcare sector: news and personal accounts

L’hôpital St Mary Soledad à Bamenda est la base du service d’ambulance de MSF dans la région du Nord-Ouest du Cameroun, ainsi qu’un hôpital où les équipes de MSF ont fourni des soins spécialisés, tels que des interventions chirurgicales d’urgence pour des accouchements complexes et des blessures par balle, de la physiothérapie, ainsi que le traitement de survivants de violences sexuelles et basées sur le genre. Cameroun, octobre 2020 © Scott Hamilton/MSF
Attacks on Healthcare: Medical Staff Deserve More Than Empty Words
On 3 May 2016, the UN adopted Resolution 2286 to protect medical facilities in times of war. Yet attacks on healthcare and medical personnel continue. MSF calls for an end to these attacks and for action against impunity.
L'hôpital Al Shifa gravement détruit dans la ville de Gaza.
Record level of attacks on medical care in armed conflict, as States neglect obligation to protect civilians
An MSF report condemns the growing disregard for international humanitarian law by the warring parties.
Une femme transporte des sacs de nourriture sur la tête après un largage de vivres effectué par le PAM près de Chuil, dans l'État de Jonglei, au Soudan du Sud. L'escalade de la violence a provoqué une nouvelle vague de déplacements : des milliers de personnes fuient les combats et cherchent refuge à Chuil et dans ses environs. Soudan du Sud, mars, 2026 © Isaac Buay/MSF
Attacks on healthcare and civilians, rape, hunger: South Sudan is at a breaking point
In a report, MSF describes 12 attacks carried out over the past 18 months against its staff and facilities. MSF is calling for the protection of civilians, healthcare workers and humanitarian organisations.