In 1990 the ICRC was one of the few humanitarian organizations operating in Afghanistan with the consent of both government authorities and opposition movements who were engaged in civil war. The previous year we set up subdelegations in Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif, continuing a gradual expansion of our activities that began in 1987.
The delegation in Kabul and the two subdelegations had nearly 700 Afghan employees and over 100 expatriate staff, some two-thirds of whom were medical staff. Most of the medical personnel were sent from the National Red Cross Societies of various European countries, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
Starting in April, with the agreement of all parties concerned, our teams travelled regularly to opposition-held zones from government-controlled towns and areas. We treated the wounded and evacuated the most serious cases to the surgical hospital in Kabul. After treatment the wounded were returned to opposition-held areas. Another significant step forward took place in April when the first of a series of joint medical missions took place, with ICRC teams from Pakistan working alongside colleagues from Kabul.
ICRC delegates searching for missing people forwarded Red Cross messages between Kabul and Pakistan, where many people had sought refuge from the conflict. We also enabled prisoners and their families, in Kabul or in different provinces, to exchange messages. Altogether 7,968 Red Cross messages were distributed in Afghanistan in 1990.
We also visited detainees held under the authority of the Ministry of the Interior. During these prison visits, we regularly distributed aid to detainees, including food, clothing, blankets and other items. Half of this material was distributed at Pul-i-Charkhi prison in Kabul.
In 1990, for the first time, our delegates based in government-controlled territory were able to visit people held by opposition forces. Delegates from our Mazar-i-Sharif subdelegation met with people detained by two opposition groups in May and July. Other visits to people detained by the Afghan opposition were conducted from Pakistan.
On 6 March 1990, an attempted coup took place, causing around 100 deaths and 300 casualties, of whom 46 were admitted to our war surgery hospital in Kabul. Admissions to the hospital reached a record high of over 500 patients in August, when the capital came under heavy shelling and rocket attacks. Mohammed Osman was tragically killed in one such attack. The hospital started out with 50 beds in October 1988; by the end of 1990 this number had increased to 280. Between January and December, our hospital in Kabul admitted 4,088 patients.
We continued to support ten Afghan Red Crescent Society dispensaries in Kabul, as well as others in Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif. The orthopaedic centre in Kabul, operational since 1988, produced 3,682 pairs of crutches, 1,333 prostheses, and fitted 1,213 new patients in 1990. We also continued to train local orthopaedic technicians and physiotherapists. The construction of a larger orthopaedic centre to replace the existing one began, with a view to enabling ICRC and local staff to meet growing needs. An orthopaedic field unit was set up in Mazar-i-Sharif, where each month up to 40 amputees were fitted with artificial limbs or had them repaired.
Throughout 1990, we continued our efforts to support the Afghan Red Crescent Society, including in the reconstruction of the Red Crescent administrative centre, which had been damaged by rocket fire. The Red Crescent received four vehicles (two of them given by the Netherlands Red Cross) to help boost its logistics capacity and expand its ambulance service.
