Beirut, Lebanon, 15 October 2023 — The World Health Organization (WHO) has expedited the delivery of critical medical supplies to Lebanon in order to be ready to respond to any potential health crisis. Two shipments arrived in Beirut today from WHO’s logistics hub in Dubai, and include enough surgical and trauma medicines and supplies to meet the...

Self-assessment phase of the second round of the Joint External Evaluation in Iraq. Photo credit: WHO/WHO Iraq 15 October 2023, Cairo, Egypt – In the diverse WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, positive results have been yielded by concerted efforts to enhance health security through the monitoring and building of the International Health...

15 October 2023, Cairo, Egypt – The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region has made great strides in strengthening public health intelligence capabilities in recent years, thanks to joint efforts by WHO and the Region’s countries and territories. WHO stresses the importance of continuous monitoring and prompt signal detection. Hence, a dedicated team of...

Review workshop for the first phase of the project to improve monitoring capacity in humanitarian and fragile settings, September 2023. Photo credit: WHO/Health Emergencies Programme 15 October 2023, Cairo, Egypt – In the complex landscape of fragile, conflict-affected and vulnerable (FCV) settings, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) play a crucial...

Photo credit: Ministry of Health, Occupied Palestinian territory 14 October 2023 – As the United Nation’s agency responsible for public health, the World Health Organization (WHO) strongly condemns Israel's repeated orders for the evacuation of 22 hospitals treating more than 2000 inpatients in northern Gaza. The forced evacuation of patients and...

14 October 2023, Cairo, Egypt – A plane carrying 78 cubic metres of health supplies from WHO’s logistics hub in Dubai has landed in Al-Arish airport in Egypt. The supplies will be delivered to Gaza to meet critical health needs as soon as humanitarian access through the Rafah crossing is established. Every hour these supplies remain on the...

Jerusalem, 12 October 2023 - WHO warns that the health system in the Gaza Strip is at a breaking point. Time is running out to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe if fuel and life-saving health and humanitarian supplies cannot be urgently delivered to the Gaza Strip amidst the complete blockade. Hospitals have only a few hours of electricity each...

12 October 2023 – A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake that struck the western region of Afghanistan on 7 October 2023 caused widespread devastation in a country facing one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. Women, children and vulnerable populations are gravely affected by the disaster. WHO’s Country Office in Kabul and field office in Herat...

12 October 2023, Cairo, Egypt − The 70th session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean concluded today. RC70 took place amid a barrage of emergencies in the Region, including escalating hostilities and a deteriorating humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, increasing conflict in northwest Syria and...

11 October 2023 – The climate crisis is the greatest health challenge of the 21st century. The mean temperature is increasing rapidly and other climatic variables are worsening – and these changes are occurring twice as fast in the Eastern Mediterranean Region as elsewhere in the world. The health impacts of climate change are substantial and include...