The acclaimed Italian surgeon Dr. Gino Strada has died at the age of 73.

Rome, August 19 (RHC)-- The acclaimed Italian surgeon Dr. Gino Strada has died at the age of 73.   Born in Sesto San Giovanni in 1948, he was a war surgeon for the International Committee of the Red Cross in scenarios such as Afghanistan and Somalia.  He founded Emergency in 1994 with his wife Teresa Sarti.

Dr. Strada was the founder of the medical aid group Emergency in 1994 along with his wife, Teresa Sarti.  The organization provides assistance to civilian victims of war.  He worked in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Rwanda and other countries.  In 2015, he won the Right Livelihood Award.

In a recent interview, Dr. Gino Strada said: “War, just like deadly diseases, has to be prevented and cured.  Violence is not the right medicine: It does not cure the disease; it kills the patient.  The abolition of war is the first indispensable step in this direction.”