Lives are at stake and “the cost of inaction is too high,” Dr. Hanan Balki, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, said in a statement on Saturday after a five-day visit to Syria.
She expressed grave concern about the complexities and challenges faced by populations and humanitarian operations on the ground.
“The number of people in need of assistance is staggering and significant vulnerabilities remain in many parts of the country,” she said.
“There is a risk that this already catastrophic situation will worsen further, increasing political tensions in the region and further escalating Syria.”
Deal with multiple challenges
Syria’s health sector is not only affected by resource scarcity, but also by a rapidly deteriorating socio-economic situation due to ongoing insecurity, climate change, environmental risks, displacement, poverty, and lack of access to adequate food. is also affected.
In discussions with officials, Dr. Balki emphasized the importance of strengthening multi-sector collaboration to address these challenges.
He said almost 75% of deaths nationwide were due to chronic diseases. The rising rates of malnutrition among children under five and their mothers due to poverty are also extremely worrying.
Child malnutrition triples
He said the global rate of acute malnutrition among under-fives has tripled in the past four years. At the same time, the number of stunted children has increased in five of the 14 prefectures, reaching catastrophic levels in some areas.
Syria remains one of the world’s largest displacement crises. More than 7.2 million people are internally displaced.
She pointed to the situation in northern Aleppo, where life is extremely difficult due to the protracted conflict and the deadly earthquake that struck the region and neighboring Turkiye in February 2023.
“Lack of electricity has led to innovative but unsafe approaches to heating and cooking, increasing the risk of fire and domestic burns, especially for children,” she said.
A family takes shelter in a school after the devastating earthquake that struck the Atarib region in western Aleppo, Syria (File).
Health system ‘very weak’
He said that in addition to overcrowded living conditions and limited access to clean water and adequate sanitation across Syria, outbreaks of cholera, severe acute respiratory infections, measles, lice and scabies have been occurring over the past two years. He pointed out that reports have been made regularly over the years.
“Against this difficult backdrop, Syria’s health system remains extremely weak,” she said. Currently, just over 60 percent of both hospitals and primary health centers are fully operational, but there is a severe shortage of essential medicines and medical equipment.
“What is most concerning is the fact that almost half of the health workers who form the backbone of every health system have left the country,” she added.
Access to Al Hol Camp
Additionally, access to health care remains limited, despite efforts by WHO and partners to recover and rebuild health services.
She was deeply concerned about conditions in the notorious Al-Hol refugee camp in the northwest, where families of former ISIL fighters have been detained for years.
WHO is one of the main health providers in the Al-Hol region, where both the needs and the public health risks are immense. Camp authorities have revoked WHO access since May 9 after a lack of funding forced the UN agency to suspend medical referrals.
“Unfettered access to people in the camps must be restored in line with humanitarian principles to ensure public health imperatives are met,” she said.
Shortage of funds, increased commitment
Dr. Balki reported that during his time in Syria, “the decline in humanitarian funding to Syria was a central and alarming concern.” Meetings with donors in the capital Damascus revealed that they recognize the magnitude of the gap and need, but are constrained by competing regional and global priorities.
She highlighted WHO’s efforts to support the Syrian people, who remain resilient despite more than a decade of war and a deepening crisis.
She called for increased international support and the WHO’s technical support to tackle these complex challenges, as “too many lives are at risk and the cost of inaction is too high.” He vowed to strengthen his expertise.
