1. On Monday, 24 March 2014, agents of the Prime Ministry obstructed the transfer of two residents to the hospital despite the fact that they both are suffering from acute internal maladies and had important specialists’ appointments.

2. On this same day, a group of patients left Camp Liberty after a 3.5 hour delay due to delays and stonewalling introduced by agents of the Prime Ministry and when they reached the hospital the time for visits of the patients was over.

3. One of the Prime Ministry agents who had accompanied the patients prevented medical tests and examinations, including a CT Scan, coercing the patients to leave the hospital without having their tests. He told one of the patients that even if the doctor had been present, I would not have let him examine you.

4. On Tuesday, 25 March 2014, these same agents prevented a cancer patient from going to the hospital. The patient had undergone surgery the week prior and is undergoing chemotherapy and imperatively needs to refer to the physician.

5. On the same day, the agents obstructed the transfer of one of the residents with severe intestinal bleeding to the hospital. This patient needs special injections under physician supervision. Iraqi suppressive forces also barred this same patient from going to the hospital last week. 

6. On the same day, a patient suffering from cancer reached the hospital after a considerable delay and had to return to the camp without being seen by the physician.

7. On this same day, two other patients got to the hospital after much delay imposed by the Prime Ministry agent and were too late for their medical appointments.

The abovementioned incidents have been brought to the attention of UN representatives and monitors, but they have taken no action. The medical blockade and obstruction of free access to medical services and introducing lags or preventing the medical treatment of the patients by Government of Iraq have been ongoing for five years and have led to the tormenting to death of 18 camps Ashraf and Liberty residents.

Article 8 of the Rome Statute, the statute of the International Criminal Court, states that “Wilfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health” or “intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including wilfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions” are blatant examples of ‘war crime’. According to article 7 of this same Statute, any measure “intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health” or “deprivation of access to food and medicine” are blatant examples of ‘crime against humanity’.

The Iranian Resistance call on the U.S. government and the United Nations that have time and again committed themselves in writing to the safety and security of Camp Liberty residents to adopt immediate measures to end the anti-human medical blockade.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran

March 26, 2014