I won't let them in. But supplies of medicine remain uneven and hospitals are suffering from a severe lack of blood bags for transfusions. Hospital wards in the south are still filled with cases of chronic malnutrition and serious diseases like leukemia. Abdul Kareem Subber, the deputy director of the Basra Pediatric Hospital, describes how on a typical day, he has enough antibiotics for only four of the six people he operates on. And sometimes, he must operate by flashlight, using the same rubber gloves for multiple patients.
Life is perhaps toughest on the children.
And enrollment is plunging. Only three of Suhilla Hattam's seven children are still in school. The rest work in the market every day selling nylon bags and other goods. And fun is a particularly rare commodity. In one ramshackle amusement park, only two of the 24 bumper cars still function.