WHO warns about attacks on health facilities in Iran and Lebanon

Geneva (ANTARA) - The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday (5 March) that it has verified 13 attacks on health facilities in Iran and one attack in Lebanon amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. ‘Under international humanitarian law, health facilities must be protected and must not be attacked,’ said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a press conference. He added that WHO works closely with its offices in affected countries to monitor the impact of the conflict on health services and to provide support when needed and requested. The director-general noted that WHO is very concerned about the situation in Iran and in the broader Middle East, with 16 countries now affected by the conflict. To date, nearly 1,000 lives have been reported in Iran, 50 in Lebanon, 13 in Israel, and 11 in other Gulf countries, the WHO director-general said. In addition, the conflict has triggered significant displacement, with an estimated 100,000 people leaving Iran, more than 60,000 people displaced in Lebanon, and at least 1 million people potentially displaced following evacuation orders in the southern region. Tedros also voiced concern about threats to nuclear facilities, saying that any violation of nuclear security could have serious consequences for public health.