Tunisia’s Health Minister Resigns Following Death of 11 Babies at Hospital

Tunisian Health Minister Abdel-Raouf El-Sherif resigned on Saturday after 11 babies mysteriously died Thursday and Friday at Rabta Hospital in Tunis. The resignation came just four months after El-Sherif’s appointment. Prime Minister Youssef Chahed ordered an investigation, and preliminary findings indicate that the cause of death was likely septic shock stemming from a blood infection. In a Facebook post, the Tunisian Society of Pediatrics said the infection may have been caused by intravenous equipment. State prosecutors have ordered a judicial investigation. Tunisians have complained about a deterioration in state services, especially the healthcare system, since the overthrow of former president Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011 and a transition to democracy. Tunisia’s public healthcare system was once considered one of the best in North Africa but is now fraught with management and financial problems, as well as drug shortages. Since Ali’s ouster, the country has been experiencing an economic crisis, and critics of the government say the public sector is rife with corruption.