The MDM team, comprising of a doctor and logistician and carrying a supply of badly needed medical supplies, was the first group of foreign aid workers to cross from Iran into southern Iraq.

MDM said the team intended to carry out an emergency medical assessment in Basra, before sending in further personnel.

Basra's medical infrastructure was severely damaged during the two week-long battle for the city, with hospitals reportedly lacking in the most basic of supplies such as morphine and antibiotics.

SPACE.WIRE