Military Minister Sébastien Lecornu, Sunday, on board the Dixmude. KHALED DESOUKI / AFP
Fifty kilometers from Gaza, the Minister of the Armed Forces boarded the helicopter carrier mobilized by France this Sunday to welcome the wounded from the Palestinian enclave in Egypt. He will be with the French UNIFIL soldiers stationed in southern Lebanon on Monday.
Special Envoy for Al-Arish (Egypt), on board the Dixmude,
Accompanied by his translator, Sébastien Lecornu storms into one of the tents set up on board the Dixmude. “Hello everyone!” he calls out to bedridden women. During a New Year's Eve visit on Sunday to the Amphibious Helicopter Carrier (PHA), which has been partially converted into a hospital, the Minister of the Armed Forces inquired about the situation of civilians in Gaza injured by the war raging there. He is the first French official to meet her since the fire in the Middle East this fall. “The spirit doesn't celebrate here,” he states, even if a few smiles appear during the conversations despite the obviously serious injuries. “Hello my husband! “Did we take good care of you?” he asks a ten-year-old boy whose left leg was amputated. On the cast that covers his right leg, the names of Kylian Mbappé, the French national team player, are scrawled in felt-tip pen and make the boy's face light up when we talk to him about it. “Thank God I’m taken care of, but I’m tired,” replies Maher, who has just lost his father.
Up to 20 injured per day
The national navy ship has been in the Egyptian port of Al-Arish, fifty kilometers from the Gaza Strip, for a month. As Israel steps up its offensive in response to the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, the number of civilian casualties is rising significantly. While the United Nations and humanitarian organizations are alarmed by the dramatic health conditions deteriorating in the Palestinian enclave. “France has also deployed its army against terrorism. I can testify that she has never neglected the question of the civilian population. Their protection is crucial,” emphasizes the Minister of the Armed Forces, six weeks after his long trip to the Middle East. He then managed to convince the Egyptian authorities to welcome Dixmude, at the request of Emmanuel Macron. And tried to get Israel to allow more injured people to leave the Palestinian enclave for treatment. “Unfortunately, depending on the day, between 0 and sometimes up to 20 injured people” are allowed to cross the Rafah border crossing, regrets Sébastien Lecornu, who calls for “very open discussions” with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant in order to speed up the pace.
“Steep controversies”
Since November 27, 90 Palestinians have been treated at Diksmuide. “I am more used to treating soldiers, who are civilians who have been victims of gunshot wounds, explosions and spills,” testifies Chief Surgeon Paul, one of the six surgeons on board (including a Jordanian and an Emirati as backup). 130 procedures were performed in the two operating rooms. Some patients were then taken by helicopter to hospitals in Cairo. Last Thursday, France also announced that two children had arrived in France for treatment.
“What a shame when thousands have already died, tens of thousands are injured and risk dying from lack of care, food and water,” lamented LFI MP Thomas Portes on social networks, who spoke of a “miserable reception”. he made fun of “the ghost nursing ship”. Alluding to the previous mission of Tonnerre, another PHA that was stationed off Diksmuide in the Mediterranean but suffered no casualties. “It was a first reaction in an emergency situation,” says Sébastien Lecornu, annoyed by “the sterile, useless and stupid controversies that may have arisen.”
“We are leaving our usual comfort”
500 people, including 240 sailors and 70 supervisors, work on the impressive 199 meter long helicopter carrier. A resuscitation room, scanners and analysis laboratories make it possible to deal with emergencies. “We are leaving our usual comfort zone because the injuries are very serious and many children are very psychologically impaired and very depressed when they come on board,” says a doctor.
The duration of the Diksmuide mission has not been specified, while France recently reiterated its desire for a “humanitarian ceasefire” that would also allow the release of hostages still held by Hamas.
Sent by the President of the Republic since the beginning of hostilities to the front line in the Middle East powder keg, Sébastien Lecornu will travel to Lebanon this Sunday evening. In the south of the Cedar Country, a stronghold of the Shiite Hezbollah, the security situation has deteriorated in recent days. When northern Israel was attacked by Hezbollah, the IDF bombed several positions near its border. Numerous exchanges of fire raise fears of an escalation 17 years after the war in Lebanon. 700 French soldiers are on site as part of UNIFIL (United Nations). The minister was due to meet her on Monday.