Israeli strikes force closure of nearly half of Lebanon’s primary health care centers: WHO

As Israel continues to pound Lebanon leading to mass destruction of both life and property, half of the country’s health care centres have shut down, World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said.

There are 207 medical centres across Lebanon’s conflict areas, out of which 100 are now closed, Tedros said on X.

“The number of people injured is increasing. The health system is struggling to cope due to limited human and resource capacity. We call for the urgent protection of patients and health workers. We call for peace,” he said.

Out of 207 primary health care centres in conflict areas in #Lebanon, 100 are now closed due to the escalation of violence. 

5 hospitals have shut as a result of structural damage following attacks.

The attacks on health workers and facilities, which have caused almost 100… pic.twitter.com/HhhgTFQ0ut

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) October 12, 2024

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15 dead in Lebanon

Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes on three villages outside traditional Hezbollah strongholds had killed at least 15 people Saturday, as state media reported further strikes elsewhere.

An “Israeli enemy strike on Maaysra”, a Shiite Muslim majority village in a mostly Christian mountain area north of Beirut, left “nine dead and 15 wounded”, the ministry said in a statement, updating an earlier toll.

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Separately, the ministry said four people had been killed and 18 others wounded in an “Israeli enemy strike” on Barja in the Shouf district south of the capital.

Israel threatens medics treating Hezbollah members

Meanwhile, the Israeli military has said that it would target ambulances “that are used by Hezbollah members to move around or transport weapons” and advised healthcare workers to “avoid dealing with Hezbollah operatives and not to cooperate with them”.

According to The Guardian, at least 50 paramedics have been killed in Israeli strikes and all of them belonged to medical facilities affiliated with Hezbollah.

On Saturday, the Lebanese Health Ministry announced on X that five hospitals had been damaged by Israeli airstrikes in the eastern city of Baalbek and the Bekaa Valley. The Israeli military has not yet commented on the incident, and independent verification of the hospital damage is currently unavailable.

With inputs from agencies