Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Marking the tenth anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 2286, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) have issued a joint urgent call to action due to escalating violence against medical services in armed conflicts. They emphasized the situation has worsened over the past decade, with ongoing and, in some cases, intensified attacks on health care facilities, transport, and personnel in conflict settings.
According to the joint statement, these attacks have catastrophic consequences: hospitals have been destroyed, ambulances obstructed, and health workers and patients frequently harmed or killed. Inadequate access to care results in preventable deaths and disrupts essential services, affecting entire communities.
The heads of the ICRC, WHO, and MSF stressed that attacks on health care signal a breakdown in the rules aimed at minimizing the harm of war. They reaffirmed that all states and armed groups must comply with international humanitarian law to respect and protect medical personnel, transport, equipment, and facilities at all times.
The statement referenced the Secretary-General’s recommendations accompanying Resolution 2286 as a clear roadmap for states to implement critical protections. They also recalled World Health Assembly Resolution 65.20, which mandated systematic documentation and reporting of attacks by WHO as essential for evidence building, prevention, response, and accountability.
The organizations expressed their readiness to support states with their presence, expertise, and operational capacity in conflict areas to help implement these measures and protect health care workers and infrastructure.