Syria produces chloroquine to fight coronavirus

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Syria has made the choice of chloroquine to treat patients suffering from the coronavirus. It must be said that after nine years of war, the country's health system is out of breath, so the authorities are betting everything on this treatment. Syrian pharmaceutical companies have taken up the challenge and are producing it, even if its effectiveness is disputed.

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Doctor Rachid al-Fayçal is based in Homs in central Syria. He is working hard with his teams to provide chloroquine to those who need it.

Founder and director of the private pharmaceutical laboratory Ibn Hayan, he fights tirelessly to maintain the activity of his company: "  I obtained the license to produce chloroquine in 2016. Originally, it was to treat a lot of other diseases. But producing this drug requires the import of its molecule and honestly, it's a real headache. Because of the war, the country is under embargo. We are making considerable efforts to guarantee our supplies. Producing drugs is a duty. We sacrifice ourselves so that the Syrians can be treated.  "

"The world scientific community is divided on chloroquine"

Dedicated teams around Rachid al-Fayçal. They never left him, even at the height of the war. Today, with his troops, this pharmacy doctor is waging this battle against the coronavirus, even if he recognizes it, nothing guarantees the effectiveness of his treatment: "  Indeed, the world scientific community is divided on the subject of chloroquine . Here, we have not carried out any study, we are only producing this medicine following the protocol set up by the Ministry of Health  . ”

A total of six laboratories in Syria are licensed to produce chloroquine. They cover the needs of the market, according to Rachid al-Fayçal. Officially, according to the Syrian authorities, the country is very little affected by the coronavirus, with only 47 cases and three deaths.

►Also read: Syria: fighting between regime and jihadists leaves 22 dead near Idleb

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