Lebanon: the ICRC delivers lifesaving medical supplies to Beirut amid ongoing escalation
Seventeen metric tons of urgently needed medical supplies have arrived in Beirut via air cargo from International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This shipment brings much-needed relief to Lebanon's health-care system, which was already under strain and now faces extreme pressure due to the ongoing armed conflict.
"The International Committee of the Red Cross received around 17 metric tons of medical supplies,” said Laetitia Nemouche Armand, ICRC’s health coordinator in Lebanon. “These supplies are intended to be distributed to hospitals in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, allowing them to continue providing critical and life-saving care to those affected by the escalating conflict."
The shipment, which arrived in the Lebanese capital from Geneva on Friday, includes surgical material and other medical items to help hospitals and medical workers care for trauma injuries, burns, and other needs. This is in addition to humanitarian relief items the ICRC had pre-positioned in Lebanon prior to the recent escalation of violence.
Medical supplies will be distributed to hospitals and medical centres across Lebanon in close collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health with a focus on supporting the newly established trauma units at Rafik Hariri University Hospital (RHUH) and Zahle Governmental Hospital. These centres will prioritize treating conflict-related injuries and provide urgent care to those most affected by the violence.
ICRC medical teams, including specialists in conflict-related injuries will be stationed at the trauma centres in RHUH and Zahle, working alongside local health professionals to strengthen their capacity in managing the most severe trauma cases and war injuries.
The ICRC’s humanitarian response to the armed conflict in Lebanon is focused on providing health-care to the wounded and sick; advocating for the respect of international humanitarian law and the protection of civilians; and addressing the essential needs of those affected by the conflict. The ICRC works closely with its partner the Lebanese Red Cross to respond to humanitarian needs in affected communities swiftly and effectively.
SHOTLIST
Length: 7’54’’
Location: Satigny warehouse Geneva – Geneva Airport – Beirut Airport – Beirut streets
Date Of Filming: 2 and 4 October 2024
Language: English
Resolution: 4K
Copyright: ICRC access all
On Screen Credit: ICRC written or logo
|
00:00-01:19 |
2 October 2024: ICRC's Satigny warehouse // The team prepares relief items, including war-wounded kits and other critically needed medical supplies, for shipment. |
|
01:20-03:28 |
4 October 2024: Geneva Airport, Switzerland, dawn // Loading of relief items for 17.5 ton shipment directly to Beirut by cargo plane. |
|
03:29-03:59 |
4 October 2024: Cargo plane taking off from Geneva Airport, heading to Beirut. |
|
04:00-04:42
|
4 October 2024: The ICRC team heads to the airport, passing scenes of displaced people living in tents along the beachfront of Beirut’s Corniche. |
|
04:43-04:56 |
4 October 2024: Beirut Airport, Lebanon. ICRC truck arrives the the cargo center. |
|
04:57-05:05 |
ICRC team arrives to the cargo center. |
|
05:06-05:39 |
Supplies are being transported from the airplane to the cargo center. |
|
05:40-07:02 |
Supplies are being loaded from the cargo centre into the ICRC truck. |
|
07:03-07:24 |
Laetitia Nemouche Armand, Health Coordinator at ICRC Lebanon:
"Today, the International Committee of the Red Cross received around 17 metric tons of medical supplies. These supplies are intended to be distributed to hospitals in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, allowing them to continue providing critical and life-saving care to those affected by the escalating conflict. " |
|
07:25-07:54 |
The ICRC truck leaves the cargo center, filled with the received supplies, heading towards the ICRC warehouse for later distribution to assigned hospitals. |
Ends
For further information, please contact:
Sally Aoun, ICRC Beirut, +961 81 314 798, saaoun@icrc.org
Crystal Wells, ICRC Geneva, +41 79 642 80 56, cwells@icrc.org press@icrc.org
or visit our website: www.icrc.org
About the ICRC
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a neutral, impartial and independent organization with an exclusively humanitarian mandate that stems from the Geneva Conventions of 1949. It helps people around the world affected by armed conflict and other violence, doing everything it can to protect their lives and dignity and to relieve their suffering, often alongside its Red Cross and Red Crescent partners.
