Syria participates the 154th session Executive Council World Health Organization

Geneva-(ST)- With the participation of Syria, the work of the 154th session of the Executive Council of the World Health Organization  begins today in Geneva, Switzerland, and will continue until the 27th of this month.

In a speech, the head of the Syrian delegation the Minister of Health, Dr. Hassan Muhammad Al-Ghobash, called on reviewing the report issued by the organization on the effects of coercive measures on health conditions in the targeted countries, stressing the need to immediately end these unilateral measures without restrictions or conditions.

Minister Al-Ghobash pointed to the effects of the war that Syria is suffering from, in addition to the economic blockade and unilateral coercive measures imposed on the Syrian people, which prevents the arrival of necessary medical and pharmaceutical supplies, and prevents the rebuilding of the infrastructure destroyed as a result of the earthquake, which has worsened the health situation in the affected cities.

Minister Al-Ghobash pointed to the effects of the war that Syria is suffering from, in addition to the economic blockade and unilateral coercive measures imposed on the Syrian people, which prevents the arrival of necessary medical and pharmaceutical supplies, and prevents the rebuilding of the infrastructure destroyed as a result of the earthquake, which has worsened the health situation in the affected cities. This was reflected in all aspects of life.

Minister Al-Ghobash explained that these measures hinder the development of comprehensive, qualitative health strategies to confront the difficulties and challenges of all health issues that Syria is witnessing, especially confronting the health emergency resulting from the unjust aggression of the Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinian people, as its effects are likely to extend to neighboring countries leads countless health risks and emergencies.

The Minister  thanked the World Health Organization and the Director-General of the Organization, Tedros Ohanom Ghebreyesus, for standing by Syria.He noted the  visit of Ghebreyesus to Syria after the devastating earthquake to see what the earthquake left behind and to assess the urgent needs resulting from it.

The Syrian Arab Republic also delivered a statement on behalf of the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region entitled “Sustainable Financing: The Organization’s Investment Round,” in which Minister Al-Ghobash stressed that there is a firm agreement among the member states in this region on the organization’s need for sustainable financing., so that it can understand its mandate as the leading global normative and coordinating environment in the field of health, and the presence of a strong regional office and strong country offices for the organization that have capabilities that are in line with the aspirations of member states.

It is noteworthy that the World Health Assembly unanimously elected Syria in May 2021 during its 74th session as a member of the Executive Council of the World Health Organization, representing the Eastern Mediterranean Region for a period of three years.

The Executive Council is one of the three constituent bodies of the World Health Organization, along with the General Secretariat and the World Health Assembly. Its powers include considering the nominations of the Director-General, appointing regional directors in agreement with the regional committees, and studying the program budget of the World Health Organization.

A member of the Syrian delegation – Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Haider Ali Ahmed, participated in the session’s work.

Hanan Shamout