Mariupol steel works convoy: UN health agency ready ‘for whatever is needed’
UN humanitarians said on Tuesday that they were standing ready to help receive a group of evacuees from the heavily damaged Azovstal steel works complex in the embattled Ukrainian city of Mariupol, more than two months since Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.
“We do not know what to expect …on this convoy but we are all of us, the health system, MSF is here with us and other NGOs and volunteers, all ready for the, whatever is needed,” said Dr Dorit Nizan, World Health Organization (WHO) Incident Manager for Ukraine, speaking from a reception centre in Zaporizhzhia, hundreds of miles to the north of Mariupol.
Confirmation came on Sunday from the UN aid coordinating office OCHA that the operation to evacuate desperate civilians from the vast steel plant was under way, coordinated by the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross and “parties to the conflict”.
According to news reports, more than 100 civilians were allowed to leave in the first phase of the operation. Many others have already arrived in Zaporizhzhia from villages and towns to the west of Mariupol, Dr Nizan said.
Although the majority of these arrivals had only minor injuries requiring medical care, mental health linked to the trauma of the war “is a big issue” which will require care and support in the longer term, the WHO official explained.
“We are already receiving people, mainly mothers and children from Mariupol and its vicinity. So these people continue coming and I don’t know if you can see in the background, but cars are coming with volunteers from the region here, Zaporizhzhia, that are driving them from the contact line.”
Before the Russian invasion on 24 February, Mariupol’s population numbered around 500,000. Today, around 100,000 are believed to remain in the battered city, the WHO official continued.
Since the start of the war, the UN health agency has delivered 382 tonnes of medical supplies to Ukraine, including 291 tonnes that have already reached beneficiaries. The agency has established hubs across the vast country, including in Lviv, Kyiv, Dnipro, Donetsk and Luhansk.
“Many people left these regions because they are close to the contact line, and they are you know, under fight(ing) and shelling,” Dr Nizan said. “But many of the health workers stayed to deliver, to help, and those that left are replaced by other health care workers that came from the other areas that were occupied.”
ends
STORY: Ukraine Update - WHO
TRT: 1 min 29s
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 3 May 2022 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
Institutionalised forced labour by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea constitutes grave violations of human rights – UN report
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Time is running out for starving civilians in Sudan, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday, while talks involving the country’s warring parties continue in Geneva this week.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC faces a severe humanitarian crisis with 25M in need and rising conflict-related issues.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA
A gimmer of good news emerged from Gaza on Tuesday as patients returned to at a newly reopened UN health centre in Khan Younis, six months after it was severely damaged and forced to close by heavy fighting, the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) said.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN condemns attacks on Kyiv hospitals, calls for immediate action to protect civilians.
1
1
2
Edited News | WHO
In Gaza, soaring temperatures, hunger and unsanitary conditions present an ever more deadly threat to a population under constant attack, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , WMO , IFRC
Hurricane Beryl smashes into Caribbean, turns sights on Mexico As Hurricane Beryl’s destructive path shifted to Mexico on Friday after roiling the Caribbean, UN agencies and partners said that the emergency response was underway, before warning that a very long and damaging hurricane season looks increasingly likely.
1
1
2
Edited News | IOM , mcc , UNHCR
Refugees and migrants continue to face extreme forms of violence, exploitation and death on sea and on land across Africa as they attempt to leave the continent, UN agencies said on Friday, in an appeal to border authorities to do more to protect them.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk at the 56th Human Rigths Council, made the following update on the situation of human rights in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
New evacuation orders issued by the Israeli army for areas in southern Gaza are expected to impact 250,000 people, including eastern Khan Younis and Rafah, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: People are desperate, they need everything, says UN aid agency Panic and desperation now grip ordinary Gazans struggling to survive, UN humanitarians said on Friday, amid fuel shortages of fuel and dwindling supplies that have prevented aid teams from doing their job.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
UN aid teams and partner organizations remain deeply committed to delivering lifesaving supplies into Gaza, despite the increasing dangers of working there, the Organization’s top aid official said on Wednesday.