Tiznit Governor visits African Lion 21 field hospital

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Annie Edwards
  • Utah Air National Guard

Governor Hassan Khalil, civic leader of the Tiznit Province, visited the Military Medical Surgical Field Hospital in Tafraoute, Morocco on June 10, during African Lion 2021. Open June 7-17, the hospital provides humanitarian civic assistance to Moroccans.

Khalil and his staff toured the field hospital and met with U.S. and Moroccan military leadership. Khalil welcomed the medical providers to the Tiznit Province and expressed appreciation for the medical services performed for the people of Tafraoute.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Todd Bingham, commander of the U.S. military HCA portion of AL21, said the Moroccans have provided excellent facilities and have worked side by side with U.S. forces to ensure the hospital operates successfully.

“This is a great opportunity to strengthen the alliance between the two countries,” said Bingham. “Working with the Moroccan medical providers gives us a great opportunity to learn from each other and share best practices.”

The field hospital, open June 7-17, has the capability for general medical care, surgical procedures, dental care, and several specialties including, optometry, pediatrics, gynecology, orthopedics, cardiology, and dermatology.

African Lion 2021 is U.S. Africa Command’s largest, premier, joint, annual exercise hosted by Morocco, Tunisia, and Senegal, 7-18 June. More than 7,000 participants from nine nations and NATO train together with a focus on enhancing readiness for us and partner nation forces. AL21 is multi-domain, null-component, and multinational exercise, which employs a full array of mission capabilities with the goal to strengthen interoperability among participants.