nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s-doctor-300-000-face-death-or-starvation-aleppo-n609151
An American doctor treating the horrific injuries suffered by Syrian civilians has warned that the closure of a vital highway has put 300,000 people at risk of death and starvation.
Dr. Samer Attar, a Chicago-based orthopedic surgeon who volunteered to help local medics in the embattled city of Aleppo, said last weekend's severing of the Castello Road has already caused shortages of food and medicine.
"People are running out of fresh fruit and meat. Hospitals and their staff are exhausted," he told NBC News from southeastern Turkey, where he returned after a two-week stint in a makeshift underground hospital.
The entire city "is going to be bombed and starved to death … unless the international community acts," he said.
The situation now is much worse," Attar said. "The Castello Road was permanently cut due to heavy Syrian government aerial bombardment and ground sniper fire. Before, it had been risky, but now it is impassable ... a death sentence."
He said government forces "shot and bombed anything that moved on the road," describing Aleppo as "besieged."
Attar said: "No-one allowed in or out — no fuel, no medicines, no food."
"On a daily basis, sometimes twice daily, I witnessed civilians horrifically and brutally injured from rockets, barrel bombs, and cluster bombs," Attar said. "Homes, schools, and markets were hit. You would hear about dozens killed, scores more injured. It's devastating and overwhelming to witness."
Chicago-based Dr. Samer Attar has made multiple trips to Syria. Samer Attar / SAMS
