In a phone call with Zaman Al-Wasl, the Ministry of Health threatened to file a complaint with the Ministry of Information following the publication of a report on expired and spoiled medicines at the Al-Kasra Government Hospital in the Deir ez-Zor countryside—demanding that the outlet cease publication immediately.
"Zaman Al-Wasl" maintains that the information published is accurate and correct. The outlet possesses five video clips documenting the presence of expired medicines and anesthetic drugs within the hospital, posing an imminent danger to the lives of citizens.
The outlet asserts that this issue reveals a failure in the Ministry of Health’s internal oversight of medications intended for patients. Professional and administrative responsibility does not rest solely with junior staff; it extends to the hospital administration and the health authorities tasked with supervision—most notably the director of Al-Kasra Hospital, Bakr Al-Sayyed Ahbash, and the Director of Health for Deir ez-Zor, Nasr Al-Khalaf.
Rather than merely punishing a few employees, an investigation should have been conducted into how these medicines ended up in the hospital, who was responsible for their storage and monitoring, and those found negligent should have been held accountable.
Furthermore, a member of the nursing staff has been detained on accusations of leaking the videos—which document the expired medicines—to Zaman Al-Wasl, amid further allegations that he communicated with "hostile entities." According to information obtained by the outlet, the staff member remains in detention. "Zaman Al-Wasl" asserts that publishing information regarding the safety of medications in government hospitals falls within its professional and journalistic responsibilities. Furthermore, the threat of a legal complaint in response to the publication of this information does not diminish the necessity of investigating the documented facts and holding those responsible to account.
Expired medications should have been handled in accordance with established procedures for the disposal of medical waste—ensuring they could neither be used nor reach patients—while simultaneously identifying the administrative and supervisory failures that allowed them to remain within the hospital.
Al-Hussein Al-Shishakli - Zaman Al-Wasl
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