Islamic State Opens Medical College in Mosul
As ISIS is trying to position itself as an independent state, it claims that it’s providing all sorts of citizen services including healthcare to its people.
By Rakesh Raman
It’s not all about terror and terrorism in the areas captured by the militant organization Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Rather, ISIS claims that it’s taking full care of its people and among other services it’s providing healthcare to Muslims living in ISIS-controlled cities.
In the latest issue of its magazine Dabiq, ISIS has carried a full feature that describes the healthcare facilities that it provides to citizens.
It says that the Islamic State provides the Muslims with extensive healthcare by running a host of medical facilities including hospitals and clinics in all major cities through which it is offering a wide range of medical services, from various types of complicated surgery to simpler services such as hijāmah.
As ISIS is trying to position itself as an independent state, it claims that it’s providing all sorts of citizen services including healthcare to its people.
Earlier, a video – believed to be released by the Al Hayat Media Center, the media division of ISIS – showed that the life is perfectly normal in the areas controlled by ISIS.
The 4-miniute video is shot in Arabic language and it covers the merriment happening in Nineveh, a city on the bank of the Tigris River that flows between Turkey and Iraq.
[ Read: New ISIS Video Shows All Is Well in the Islamic State ]
Moreover, ISIS claimed that its soldiers are providing comprehensive services to Muslims under the new regime which is supposed to become a Caliphate. In another issue of the Islamic State magazine Dabiq, ISIS said that in the midst of a raging war with multiple fronts and numerous enemies, life goes on in the Islamic State.
ISIS also has decided to produce its own currency in the form of gold, silver, and copper coins to be called Islamic Dinars. While the new currency may not be initially acceptable in other parts of the world, ISIS plans to use it in its own regime – in Iraq and Syria – and which is poised to expand in more territories. Currently, ISIS holds a state which is at least equivalent to the geographical area of the U.K.
And if you are ready to believe the words of John Cantlie – a hostage-turned-spokesman of ISIS – the ISIS Caliphate is now an independent country.
Counting the achievements of ISIS, Cantlie emphasizes that the terrorist outfit now controls cities and has its own police force. It also possesses tanks and artillery pieces, a strong army of soldiers, and its own spy drones.
[ Is Islamic State an Independent Country, Now? ]
Justifying its claims about an independent country, now ISIS is focusing on healthcare for Islamic State citizens.
The new medical infrastructure is aided by a widespread network of pharmacies run by qualified pharmacists and managed under the supervision and control of the Health Dīwān. Just as the medical staff in the hospitals and clinics are made up of qualified, trained professionals, the pharmacies are likewise only run by qualified and certified pharmacists, ISIS explains.
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Moreover, in order to ensure a steady supply of qualified medical personnel in the future as well as expanding and enhancing the current medical services from a professional as well as Islamic point of view, the Islamic State recently opened the Medical College in ar-Raqqah as well as the College for Medical Studies in Mosul.
To ensure a regular supply of medical professionals, ISIS says, a new 3-year / 6-semester curriculum was developed by senior medical experts. It consists of both intensive theoretical study in the first year with a gradual introduction to practical work under tutelage in the second and third years.
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The new curriculum covers specialties such as general surgery, fracture and orthopedic surgery, trauma surgery, gynecology and obstetrics, cardiology, pediatric and medical emergency, ophthalmology, urinary surgery, neurosurgery, thoracic surgery, and vascular surgery.
According to ISIS, the teaching staff consists exclusively of degree holders. Entrance is open to both females and males, with a dedicated school building, hospital, and female teaching staff for the female students.
To support the students in their efforts, the Islamic State does not charge any fees and provides the students with all that is necessary in terms of food, clothing, housing, transport, and books. For further encouragement high-achievers are granted rewards, ISIS claimed in its Dabiq article.
By Rakesh Raman, the managing editor of RMN Company
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Photo courtesy: ISIS, Dabiq
