THE Lebanese Health Ministry says Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours have killed 51 people, including two medical workers.
“The Israeli enemy continues to violate international laws and humanitarian norms, adding more crimes against paramedics, as it directly targeted two points of the Health Authority in Qalawiya and Tibnin, Bint Jbeil district, in two raids,” the ministry said.
A ceasefire, brokered by the United States, is into its third week.
The ministry said 2,846 people have been killed across the country since March 2, when Israeli forces began a new military operation.
SInce then, the United Nations says at least 103 Lebanese medical workers have been killed and 230 injured in more than 130 Israeli strikes.
“We’re under threat every second, every day,” Ali Safiuddin, the head of the Lebanese Civil Defence in Tyre in southern Lebanon, told Al Jazeera. “We ask ourselves if we’re going to survive or if we’re going to die, we know we’ve already given up our lives by working here. We’ve lost so many people and it feels like we’re already gone as well.”
Al Jazeera’s Obaida Hitto, reporting from Tyre, said that “international humanitarian laws are clear: medical personnel and first responders, like the Lebanese Civil Defence, must be protected in armed conflict, but on this front line, the question isn’t whether another strike is coming. It’s how many people will be left to answer the calls for help”.
Dr Tahir Mohammed, a war surgeon, and humanitarian worker who’s worked in both Gaza and Lebanon, told Al Jazeera that he saw parallels in Israeli actions in both places.
“We used to see our colleagues in Gaza come through the door all the time. I’ve had colleagues, nurses, medical students killed by Israeli weapons, and so to see the same policy of targeting healthcare workers in Lebanon … it’s consistent,” he said.
“If Israel had their way, they would absolutely occupy the entire southern region of Lebanon, and they would do it tomorrow. They have no care for life. I’ve seen it with my own eyes,” Dr Mohammed added.
Israeli attacks have displaced more than 1.2 million Lebanese people since March 2. Despite a ceasefire that went into effect on April 16, attacks have only increased.
