Nour and his mother sit together at the Tamayoz Social Care Association in Damascus1 March 2018 – Nour and his family fled their home in a besieged area last year, arriving in Damascus with almost nothing, after living through a terrifying ordeal. Nour lost his father and had stopped speaking.

Now 11, Nour lost his hearing when he was an infant, but his family were unable to get him assistance until recently. Last year he received a hearing aid from the Tamayoz Social Care Association, a nongovernmental organization supported in part by the World Health Organization (WHO).

"Now he can talk, express his feelings, and call to me," says his mother. "It's made a big difference."

Primary health care centre at Al-Mouaddamiyeh being rehabilitated with WHO support. WHO Syria 201828 February 2018 – WHO has participated in an inter-agency mission to assess health needs in Al-Mouaddamiyeh (Rural Damascus). This area, which recently became accessible following years of siege, is home to over a hundred thousand people. According to the local mayor, the numbers are likely to increase given the new-found stability in the city.  

The assessment team, which included representatives of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, found that years of conflict had taken a toll on the city. Its main primary health care (PHC) centre had been damaged and its water supply network was no longer functioning,  leaving people dependent on water tankers. The team also found that thousands of children under 5 years of age had not been vaccinated and that around 6000 students from 7 to 18 years of age had no access to PHC or mental health services in schools.  

7 February 2018 -  The World Health Organization (WHO) dispatched 14 tons of life-saving medicines, anesthetics, antibiotics, emergency medical kits and other treatments to Deir-ez-Zor governorate this week to urgently respond to the critical health needs of people in north-east Syria. The shipment contains more than 303 000 treatments for ill and wounded children, women and men.   

Many Syrians who have recently returned to Deir-ez-Zor have found that their homes have been damaged or destroyed, and that health care facilities in the area are closed or are only partially functioning. Recent assessments indicate that more than 40% of the governorate’s hospitals and primary health centres were forced to close following heightened conflict in 2017.  

6 February, 2018- The World Health Organization (WHO) has airlifted 17 tons of medical supplies to Al-Hasakeh governorate, Syrian Arab Republic, as part of its continued efforts to alleviate the suffering of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs) and critically ill patients in north-east Syria. 

The airlift contains enough supplies to treat at least 380 000 people, including those wounded as a result of the ongoing conflict.  

The provision of these critically-needed medical supplies is part of WHO’s commitment to boosting the health system in north-east Syria by donating life-saving medicines and essential equipment to  overstretched health care facilities in Al-Hasakeh, Rural Ar-Raqqa and Rural Deir-ez-Zor governorates.