The Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) is anchored near Port-au-Prince supporting Continuing Promise 2009, a humanitarian and civic assistance mission to Latin America and the Caribbean. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Landon Stephenson/Released)
The Guardian: US navy hospital ship stokes tensions by giving Venezuelan refugees free care
USNS Comfort, moored off Colombia, will help patients as pressure builds on relationship between Washington and Caracas
A US navy hospital ship moored off Colombia has started giving free medical care to Venezuelan refugees, in a move likely to rile officials in Caracas who deny the existence of a humanitarian crisis in their own country – and have long been suspicious of the close relationship between Colombia and the US.
As well as treating Colombians, US medical teams aboard the USNS Comfort will attend to Venezuelan refugees, particularly at the ship’s next stop in Riohacha, a city near the border between the two countries.
Some 3 million Venezuelans have fled political turmoil and economic hardship at home, including 1 million who have taken shelter in Colombia, which has struggled to deal with the exodus.
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WNU Editor: Three million Venezuelans have fled their country. And while the Venezuelan government is claiming that there is no crisis, I am sure there are many among those who have fled who need medical attention, and the deployment of the USNS Comfort is welcomed relief.