Iraq says 650 doctors have returned from exile

Some 650 of the 8,000 Iraqi physicians who fled the country since 2003 due to violence have returned to their jobs in the past two months, a Health Ministry official announced. The doctors have gone back to hospitals across Iraq due to the improved security, said Health Ministry Inspector General Adel Muhsin. Iraq's medical system is understaffed because of workers fleeing, and several weeks ago the government appealed to doctors to come home.