The UN has said that the humanitarian situation in Lebanon is now worse than during the last war with Israel 18 years ago years, reports DPA, quoted by BTA.
„The humanitarian situation in Lebanon has reached more serious levels than during the 2006 war,”, the United Nations humanitarian affairs office said in a statement released today. "The situation escalated again in recent days, with the Israeli army ordering residents of Baalbek and Nabatia to leave these areas shortly before airstrikes began," the UN added. In addition, many hospitals are overwhelmed and report an urgent need for blood donors to cope with the critical influx of casualties.
According to data from the Lebanese Ministry of Health, nearly 3,000 people have died and 13,000 have been injured in Lebanon since the start of the fighting between Israel and the Shiite group “Hezbollah”. The ministry does not make separate statistics for civilian victims and for injured Hezbollah fighters, DPA notes. Among the dead are about 180 minors and nearly 600 women.
The UN humanitarian affairs office said more than 11,000 pregnant women have been affected by the war, with 1,300 of them giving birth at a time when Lebanon's health system is on the brink of collapse.