The number of health workers killed in the line of duty in Lebanon in March has reached 51, said the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
“Today, another tragedy shook southern Lebanon: nine paramedics were killed in five attacks on health facilities, bringing the number of health workers killed this month to 51“, he wrote in his Facebook post.
According to him, March is the second deadliest month for health workers in Lebanon since October 2023, when the organization began tracking attacks on health facilities in the country. Ghebreyesus noted that in today's incidents, teams of health workers working in five Lebanese villages were attacked while on duty.
The WHO chief stressed that repeated attacks on health facilities were seriously disrupting health services in southern Lebanon. “Four hospitals and 51 primary health care centers are currently closed”, he explained. He added that several other health facilities were partially damaged and operating on a limited basis.
Earlier, the Lebanese Ministry of Health reported that the total number of civilians killed since the start of the military escalation between Lebanon and Israel had exceeded 1,100, with 3,300 injured.