Lebanon’s Minister of Health, Firas Al-Abyad, revealed an escalation in the country’s medical sector preparedness, with 150 hospitals undergoing emergency training, as the conflict between Hezbollah and the Israeli occupation continues in southern Lebanon.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Al-Abyad stated that his ministry “activated the health emergency room on the first day, preparing hospitals and logistics, such as training doctors and nurses to accommodate large numbers of war casualties.”
He further explained that “shelter areas have been prepared for displaced people, especially after more than 100,000 citizens fled from border areas to safer regions.”
The Lebanese Minister also highlighted that the Israeli occupation has “targeted more than 15 health centers in southern Lebanon, four of which were completely destroyed.” He pointed out that “250 Lebanese citizens were injured by the internationally banned white phosphorus used by Israeli forces.”
The Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon have resulted in the death of 27 healthcare workers and injured 94 others with varying degrees of wounds.
Minister Al-Abyad emphasized that “Lebanon and its people declared from the first day of the Israeli aggression that they do not want war and have called for an immediate ceasefire from Gaza to Lebanon.”
Since the onset of the military assaults on Lebanon, the Lebanese government in Beirut has formed a governmental emergency committee to respond to the situation.
The Ministry of Health has been boosting the readiness of its facilities and staff in anticipation of further escalation. They have also been conducting emergency training for teams and employees.
Lebanon’s health plan includes assessing the needs of hospitals, enhancing the skills of ambulance teams, and providing psychological support for doctors and nurses in case of a broader war, according to Anadolu Agency.
The Lebanese minister viewed the health response plan to confront war as “an opportunity to reactivate certain health institutions affiliated with the ministry, including the Turkish hospital that was donated by Turkey to Lebanon after the 2006 Israeli war. This hospital is now in the process of becoming fully operational to assist the Ministry of Health during these critical times.”
He also noted that the Ministry of Health insisted on training all hospitals following the events witnessed in Gaza, stressing that “there is no security from the Israeli enemy, and we must be ready in any region that might be subjected to Israeli aggression.”
On Tuesday, Israel’s Channel 12 reported Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant’s statement that “the army is shifting its focus northward to the Lebanese front as its mission in Gaza nears completion.”
Since October 8th, the clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli occupation forces have continued along Lebanon’s southern border with the occupied Palestinian territories.
The ongoing Israeli shelling of southern Lebanon has led to the displacement of more than 110,000 people, 35 percent of whom are children, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
