Shawky Amine Eddine, from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Lebanon, says medical facilities must be protected during armed conflict.
“Hospitals are beacons of hope and sanctuary of human life – places where life is meant to be safe,” Eddine told Al Jazeera.
“That is why under international humanitarian law, hospitals and medical personnel are assigned exclusively for medical purposes and must be respected and protected,” Eddine said.
The ICRC deployed a surgical team in the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, Lebanon’s biggest public health facility, to establish a trauma centre to care for the wounded and to relieve some of the healthcare professionals who have been responding nonstop for the past couple of weeks.
On Tuesday, at least 13 people, including a child, were killed in an Israeli air strike near the facility in southern Lebanon. At least 57 people were wounded.
“I would like to take this chance to remind all parties of their obligation under humanitarian law that they must respect these obligations – doctors and nurses must be spared because they cannot save life while they worry for their own,” he added.
TWEET YOUR COMMENT