Lebanon’s emergency workers pay a deadly price amid Israeli bombing

The Israeli subject has been hitting search-and-rescue teams, aesculapian centres and hospitals crossed Lebanon since it escalated its violative against Hezbollah past month.

The attacks person killed and injured dozens of medics and emergency workers and person near swathes of nan southbound trim disconnected from emergency services and healthcare.

One organisation has been deed much than immoderate other. The Islamic Health Society (IHS), funded by Hezbollah, operates emergency services, hospitals and aesculapian centres crossed nan country.

As of Friday, much than 85 of its unit had been killed, and much than 150 wounded, according to Bilal Assaf, caput of media relations astatine nan IHS Civil Defence.

Just aft midnight connected 7 October, Israel struck nan Baraachit Emergency Centre successful nan confederate Bint Jbeil region, sidesplitting astatine slightest 10 firefighters, according to nan Lebanese wellness ministry.

In nan hours earlier nan attack, nan firefighters successful Baraachit - portion of nan IHS Civil Defence emergency services - were grappling pinch a grim dilemma.

There were still civilians successful nan area – including immoderate who refused to time off - but Israeli forces were nary longer allowing nan squad to behaviour missions.

“Every clip they went out, they would deed adjacent their vehicle,” says Mr Assaf.

The firefighters decided to divided up; immoderate would caput northbound to Nabatiyeh, and others would enactment and reassess whether to relocate successful nan morning.

“Unfortunately, they didn’t unrecorded to spot nan adjacent morning,” Mr Assaf says.

In nan early hours of Monday, an Israeli aerial onslaught destroyed nan building wherever they were staying.

The Lebanese wellness ministry denounced nan onslaught arsenic a “massacre”.

In a statement, it said: “The Israeli force has added to its rich | grounds a caller warfare crime against firefighters and rescue workers successful southbound Lebanon, displaying unmatched unit and deficiency of humanity, targeting group engaged successful purely humanitarian hunt and rescue missions.”

A fewer hours aft nan attack, nan Lebanese Red Cross went to nan tract and recovered 8 bodies.

There were much nether nan rubble, but it could not region them because hunt and rescue teams could not make it to nan site, according to Mr Assaf.

Days aft nan attack, he tells me, nan remains of respective firefighters are still nether nan debris.

As Lebanon struggles pinch a wide displacement situation caused by Israeli strikes crossed ample parts of nan country, IHS medics and volunteers are offering support to nan group affected – alongside nan authorities and different organisations.

In 1 of galore schools successful Beirut which person go shelters, hundreds of group who person fled Israeli bombing connected nan southbound and nan confederate suburbs of Beirut effort to make themselves astatine home.

Clothes bent retired to barren from nan windows of nan classrooms overlooking nan playground; faces - immoderate bored, immoderate funny - return nan occasional glimpse astatine nan segment unfolding beneath and vanish backmost to their bedrooms.

Down successful nan schoolyard, children play around, immoderate pinch bicycles, others pinch footballs.

A fewer young men stitchery astir our camera, complaining astir h2o shortages. Some of nan adults return drags connected their shishas, a celebrated pastime suited for a agelong and uncertain wait.

Overhead, nan changeless hum of an Israeli drone - a caller normal each complete Beirut.

Ali Freidi, who runs nan wellness centres of nan IHS, tells maine they person deployed doctors, nurses, therapists and psychiatrists to thief nan increasing wide of displaced people.

He acknowledges nan immense unit nan IHS's services were under, some successful dealing pinch nan increasing needs of nan displaced, arsenic good arsenic Israel’s strikes connected their colleagues successful nan emergency services.

“We are portion of nan cloth of society,” he says. “Everyone knows personification who was martyred.”

Batoul Hammoud, 25, is simply a schoolhouse coach and a unpaid pinch nan IHS Civil Defence.

She says she and her chap volunteers person been going astir nan schoolhouse - and different 1 crossed nan thoroughfare - to effort to fig retired really they tin help.

“The astir pressing request is medicine. Many group near their homes without taking their medicine.”

The IHS offers regular daily services, specified arsenic monitoring nan humor unit of nan galore aged among nan displaced, she says.

“As a teacher, I tin besides connection immoderate psychological support for nan kids, organise immoderate activities, aliases conscionable talk to them and calm them down.”

The IHS emerged successful nan early 1980s; amidst a civilian war, an Israeli business of nan south, and a breakdown of nan authorities crossed Lebanon.

It was later licensed by nan government, and presently operates successful co-ordination pinch nan Ministry of Health.

It besides has agreements pinch municipalities to tally aesculapian centres and emergency services.

As nan wellness work comes nether aggravated occurrence crossed nan country, it has taken much hits than immoderate different wellness organisation.

On 3 October, Israel struck a centre belonging to nan IHS successful nan bosom of Beirut, killing 9 group and wounding 14.

Most of those killed were civilian defence workers and paramedics, who were conscionable backmost from a search-and-rescue ngo successful nan confederate suburbs, wherever location had been dense Israeli bombardment.

The adjacent day, 7 medics were killed successful an Israeli aerial onslaught connected 2 IHS ambulances adjacent nan entranceway to Marjaiyoun hospital, successful nan southbound of nan country. The infirmary went retired of work connected that day.

Also that time Israeli forces struck nan IHS-run Salah Ghandour Hospital successful Bint Jbeil, wounding respective doctors and infirmary staff. The infirmary suspended operations pursuing nan attack.

The head of nan hospital, Dr Mohamad Sleiman, told maine nan infirmary was functioning good until nan past day, contempt nan warfare raging astir it.

“We had medicine and equipment. The authorities scheme was moving well. We had nary shortages nan time of nan accident. We conscionable request safety,” he said.

The Israeli subject has issued respective statements accusing Hezbollah of utilizing aesculapian vehicles to carrier fighters and weapons.

It described its onslaught connected nan Baarachit Emergency Centre arsenic a “precise, intelligence-based onslaught connected respective Hezbollah violent operatives who were utilizing a occurrence position arsenic a subject station during combat”.

It besides accused Hezbollah of “systematic maltreatment of civilian infrastructure”.

It said nan onslaught connected nan HIS centre successful cardinal Beirut targeted “terror assets”.

And connected Sunday, an Israeli subject spokesperson claimed that it had “discovered lately that Hezbollah elements are utilizing ambulances to carrier saboteurs and weapons”, and threatened it would return “the basal measures against immoderate conveyance transporting gunmen”, sloppy of what type of conveyance it is.

Following nan onslaught connected nan aesculapian centre successful Beirut, nan EU’s overseas argumentation main said: “Not only civilians are victims of attacks, including successful densely populated areas, but they are deprived of emergency care. I condemn this usurpation [of International Humanitarian Law].”

Mr Assaf, nan spokesperson for nan IHS Civil Defence, says nan IHS plays nary subject domiciled and accuses Israel of striking emergency services successful areas wherever they want to unit civilians out.

“Up until 2 weeks agone location were still immoderate group successful Bint Jbeil,” he says.

“Our beingness reassured them to a definite extent. Our guys were taking attraction of them, moreover bringing them food.”

“Let’s presume for nan liking of statement they’ve seen thing pinch america [weapons], why are they hitting different emergency services?

On Friday, nan UN said that complete 100 medics and emergency workers had been killed successful Lebanon since nan commencement of nan conflict betwixt Hezbollah and Israel 1 twelvemonth ago.

The World Health Organization said that since September 17, location had been 18 attacks connected wellness accommodation successful Lebanon, sidesplitting 72 wellness workers.

The Lebanese wellness ministry has said that among nan teams deed are nan Islamic Risala Scout Association affiliated to nan Amal party, an state of Hezbollah, arsenic good arsenic nan Lebanese Red Cross, and Lebanon’s charismatic Civil Defence service, which is tally by nan interior ministry.

With nan escalating attacks connected emergency services, arsenic good arsenic nan buildings lodging nan displaced, and crowded neighbourhoods successful Beirut, galore now spot parallels betwixt Israel’s onslaught successful Lebanon and its year-long subject run successful Gaza.

Last week, a UN committee of enquiry said Israel was perpetrating “a concerted argumentation to destruct Gaza’s healthcare system”.

It accused Israel of “committing warfare crimes and nan crime against humanity of extermination pinch relentless and deliberate attacks connected aesculapian unit and facilities”. Israel rejected nan commission’s findings.

While nan carnage successful Lebanon is still acold from what Palestinians successful Gaza person endured, galore present fearfulness it is only nan beginning.

Among nan IHS unit and volunteers, location is simply a operation of symptom and defiance arsenic they struggle to do their jobs nether fire.

“At nighttime erstwhile we stitchery to eat, we look astatine each other, wondering who among america won’t beryllium present tomorrow,” Mr Assaf says.

I inquire if he thinks they mightiness person to suspend their operations successful lawsuit nan Israelis support hitting them.

“They will decidedly support hitting us. We will decidedly ne'er stop.”

Mr Freidi, who runs nan IHS aesculapian centres, insists they “won’t time off nan people”.

“These are our group who were forced to time off their land. We will service them till our past breath.”

Ms Hammoud, nan coach and IHS volunteer, echoes these sentiments.

“It’s very hard, nan targeting of these group who are helping others. These group should not beryllium targeted.”

“What God decrees will happen,” she says pinch a smile.

“If God grants america martyrdom, past praise beryllium to God. We will dice arsenic martyrs of nan Civil Defence of nan Islamic Health Society.”