Ukraine, Gaza, Syria...: Thanks to wars, bacteria turning antibiotics useless

As wars rage across Ukraine, Gaza, and Syria, a silent and equally devastating crisis is unfolding: the explosion of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Conditions in conflict zones have triggered a tenfold rise in lethal infections, pushing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to a perilous new level where the growth of multidrug-resistant microbes is now outpacing antibiotic development.

The problem is starkly visible in Ukraine, where hospitals are witnessing a surge in multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae infections. Similar outbreaks have been reported in Gaza and Syria. Damage to sanitation and health infrastructure, medicine shortages, and contaminated combat wounds have created ideal conditions for resistant bacteria to thrive. Doctors often have no option but to rely on last-resort antibiotics, accelerating the risk of resistance.

A case from Kyiv’s City Clinical Hospital highlights the crisis. In April 2023, a 32-year-old Ukrainian soldier known as “Black” suffered severe abdominal injuries from shrapnel. Despite multiple surgeries and rounds of antibiotics, he developed sepsis caused by an extremely drug-resistant infection. His doctors resorted to an experimental combination of drugs, a desperate measure that underlined the growing limits of medical treatment in war.

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Jason Bennett, director of the Multidrug-Resistant Organism Repository and Surveillance Network at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, described the bacteria emerging from Ukraine as “incredibly resistant”, unlike anything previously observed.

Growing global threat beyond the battlefield

The link between warfare and deadly infections is not new. Before antibiotics were discovered, infections claimed more soldiers’ lives than combat itself. During the Second World War, the US government and military invested heavily in antibiotic research, making drugs like penicillin as strategically vital as ammunition.

Today, however, antibiotics have lost that priority. The neglect of infection control as a security issue has allowed AMR to evolve into a global menace, one capable of continuing its deadly march long after wars end.

The spread of infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii, once easily treatable — signals how conflict can amplify microbial evolution. Acinetobacter baumannii first gained notoriety during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, where it infected wounded soldiers and became known as “Iraqibacter”. Now, it is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections worldwide.

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Experts warn that as armed conflicts reach record highs, drug-resistant infections could accelerate further. Nearly five million deaths are already linked to AMR each year, and this figure may rise by over 70 per cent by 2050 if current trends continue. The failure to develop effective new antibiotics could make routine medical procedures such as surgery and chemotherapy increasingly dangerous.

Health security bodies like the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority are working to strengthen defences against AMR, but analysts argue that the military may once again need to play a central role in antibiotic innovation. Without urgent action, drug-resistant infections could claim as many as 169 million lives by 2050.

Experts stress that innovation, equitable access, and a fundamental shift in mindset are essential. Unless antimicrobial resistance is recognised as a major global security threat, wars will continue to breed deadly superbugs, and humanity may soon face a battle it cannot win.