WHO as a “confidant” of Hamas? UN organization contradicts Israel
Published: Friday, Jan 26th 2024, 19:40
Zurück zu Live Feed
The World Health Organization (WHO) has rejected Israeli accusations in connection with Hamas. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus defended himself on Friday against accusations that the UN organization was "in collusion" with Hamas in the Gaza Strip over the fact that the Islamists had misused clinics as bases and for the detention of hostages. "Such false allegations are harmful and can endanger our staff who risk their lives to serve vulnerable people," Tedros said in Geneva.
Meirav Eilon Shahar, Israel's UN ambassador in Geneva, told the WHO Executive Board on Thursday that the UN organization was ignoring concrete evidence from the Israeli side. "The WHO knew that hostages were being held in hospitals and that terrorists were active there," she said. "This is not incompetence, this is complicity," she said. The diplomat used the English word "collusion", which can also be translated as "tacit acquiescence".
"As a UN organization, the WHO is impartial and is committed to the health and well-being of all people," Tedros replied on Friday. He did not specifically address the accusations regarding the presence of Hamas terrorists in healthcare facilities. In the course of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, the WHO has repeatedly criticized the destruction of Palestinian clinics and pointed out the catastrophic health care in the coastal strip.
©Keystone/SDA