WHO’s work in health emergencies (item 14.1)

The World Medical Association welcomes the report on WHO’s work in health emergencies and highlights the severe and escalating impact of the climate crisis on global health.

However, the report fails to adequately recognise armed conflict as a primary driver of health emergencies and a major barrier to their effective management in many affected countries. In conflict settings, health personnel are on the front line and are increasingly subjected to targeted attacks and threats.

The United Nations Security Council Resolution 2286 unequivocally condemns violence against health care and requires all parties to armed conflict to comply with international humanitarian law. Ten years after its adoption, these obligations continue to be systematically breached. Urgent action is required to protect health care and ensure its neutrality at all times.