Yesterday, Friday, the first day of the “Syrian-French Medical Conference” began in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, the first of its kind in the region, with the participation of the Minister of Health Musab al-Ali, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Marwan al-Halabi, and a number of officials from Deir ez-Zor Governorate and the eastern region.
Wide participation
800 participants, including doctors and pharmacists from France, all of Europe, America and the Gulf countries, are participating in the conference, in addition to participants from inside Syria. The conference also includes more than 160 international peer-reviewed scientific medical research.
Dr. Abdel Moneim Hamid, a respiratory disease consultant in France, confirmed in an interview with “Syria Now” that the conference aims to “extend bridges of communication and medical, scientific and academic cooperation with our people and colleagues in all regions of the Syrian Jazeera.”
For his part, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research stated through his account on the “X” platform, saying: “The conference and the extensive medical campaign that accompanies it in the eastern region is not just a scientific event or a temporary treatment initiative, but rather a step towards building medical and academic cooperation whose impact is directly reflected in the lives of citizens.”
Regarding the future vision of academic and medical institutions, the Minister emphasized the transition “from temporary initiatives to sustainable partnerships, from transferring knowledge to localizing it, and from traditional training to advanced clinical qualification.”
In turn, the Minister of Health reviewed developments in the health situation in the region, noting in numbers that the region included 6 hospitals operating at the beginning of 2025, but today there are “13 hospitals operating in Deir ez-Zor Governorate.”
Al-Ali added in a speech that the Ministry also increased the number of health centers from 30 centers in 2025 to 82 centers to date, with 5 centers to be opened in the west of the Euphrates region and 7 in its east during the next week, with a contribution from the “Deir al-Ezz” campaign.
“Complex” surgeries
On the sidelines of the conference, a French medical delegation performed surgeries that were described as “complicated” in the region, and Doctor Philippe Valenti, the surgeon supervising the operations, reported to “Syria Now” that two operations had been completed during the first day, one of them for complications of congenital paralysis in the shoulder, and the other was to rebuild the fist and improve its function.
Valenti pointed out the importance of these surgeries, saying: “Performing microsurgery is very important for this city because they have good surgeons who have experience in trauma medicine and ambulatory surgery, and they must improve in elective and corrosive cases or complex cases, and I am here to help them, train and provide expertise and advice to the surgeons of this hospital.”
Modern MRI machine
In the context of medical equipment in the governorate, Minister Al-Ali announced the installation of a modern magnetic resonance device “free of helium gas, which contributes to reducing maintenance and subsequent requirements,” stressing that it is intended to serve the entire eastern region of Syria. The Minister of Health also indicated that the jaw surgery department at the National Hospital has been equipped, as well as a cardiac catheterization department.
Last August, the Ministry of Health opened a number of specific medical departments and projects in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, most notably laying the foundation stone for the Oncology Hospital, as part of a plan to “achieve justice and equality” in developing medical services in Deir ez-Zor and the eastern region of Syria, a project that was announced by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at a cost of 21 million dollars.