The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Mariupol steel works convoy: UN health agency ready ‘for whatever is needed’
UN humanitarians said on Tuesday that they were standing ready to help receive a group of evacuees from the heavily damaged Azovstal steel works complex in the embattled Ukrainian city of Mariupol, more than two months since Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.
“We do not know what to expect …on this convoy but we are all of us, the health system, MSF is here with us and other NGOs and volunteers, all ready for the, whatever is needed,” said Dr Dorit Nizan, World Health Organization (WHO) Incident Manager for Ukraine, speaking from a reception centre in Zaporizhzhia, hundreds of miles to the north of Mariupol.
Confirmation came on Sunday from the UN aid coordinating office OCHA that the operation to evacuate desperate civilians from the vast steel plant was under way, coordinated by the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross and “parties to the conflict”.
According to news reports, more than 100 civilians were allowed to leave in the first phase of the operation. Many others have already arrived in Zaporizhzhia from villages and towns to the west of Mariupol, Dr Nizan said.
Although the majority of these arrivals had only minor injuries requiring medical care, mental health linked to the trauma of the war “is a big issue” which will require care and support in the longer term, the WHO official explained.
“We are already receiving people, mainly mothers and children from Mariupol and its vicinity. So these people continue coming and I don’t know if you can see in the background, but cars are coming with volunteers from the region here, Zaporizhzhia, that are driving them from the contact line.”
Before the Russian invasion on 24 February, Mariupol’s population numbered around 500,000. Today, around 100,000 are believed to remain in the battered city, the WHO official continued.
Since the start of the war, the UN health agency has delivered 382 tonnes of medical supplies to Ukraine, including 291 tonnes that have already reached beneficiaries. The agency has established hubs across the vast country, including in Lviv, Kyiv, Dnipro, Donetsk and Luhansk.
“Many people left these regions because they are close to the contact line, and they are you know, under fight(ing) and shelling,” Dr Nizan said. “But many of the health workers stayed to deliver, to help, and those that left are replaced by other health care workers that came from the other areas that were occupied.”
ends
STORY: Ukraine Update - WHO
TRT: 1 min 29s
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 3 May 2022 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide shot, Palais des Nations flag alley, nations’ flags flying, a cloudy day.
- Wide shot, podium with moderator in Press briefing room, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Dorit Nizan, (via Zoom from Zaporizhzhia), WHO Incident Manager for Ukraine: “We do not know what to expect on the, you know, on this convoy but we are all of us, the health system, MSF is here with us and other NGOs and volunteers, all ready for the, whatever is needed.”
- Wide shot, podium moderator and large-screen TV showing Dr Nizan speaking via Zoom from Ukraine.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Dorit Nizan, (via Zoom from Zaporizhzhia), WHO Incident Manager for Ukraine: “We are already receiving people, mainly mothers and children from Mariupol and its vicinity. So these people continue coming and I don’t know if you can see in the background, but cars are coming with volunteers from the region here, Zaporizhzhia, that are driving them from the contact line.”
- Medium shot, journalists wearing facemasks checking phone or typing on laptops, TV light panel to rear.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Dorit Nizan, (via Zoom from Zaporizhzhia), WHO Incident Manager for Ukraine: “Many people left these regions because they are close to the contact line, and they are you know, under fight(ing) and shelling, but many of the health workers stayed to deliver, to help, and those that left are replaced by other health care workers that came from the other areas that were occupied.”
- Medium shot, journalists wearing facemasks, typing on laptops or checking mobile phone.
- Medium shot, journalists wearing facemasks, typing on laptop or taking notes.
- Wide shot, journalists wearing facemasks, typing on laptop or taking notes.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
No evacuation order given before Kamal Adwan Hospital strike, says WHO
One of the last partially functional health centres in northern Gaza was reportedly hit again overnight into Friday by several strikes, leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | OCHA
More than 280,000 people have been uprooted in northwest Syria in a matter of days following the sudden and massive offensive into Government-controlled areas led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is sanctioned by the Security Council as a terrorist group.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk has called on the Georgian authorities to respect and protect the rights to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly following several nights of protests that were marred by violence, and dispersed using disproportionate, and in some cases unnecessary, force by the police in the capital, Tbilisi.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said today he was extremely concerned about the recent escalation in hostilities in northwest Syria, which further compounds the suffering endured by millions of civilians.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO , OCHA
Syria escalation: Civilians face deadly attacks, health care in distress and aid access compromised
The ongoing escalation of violence in northwest Syria linked to the wider conflict in Gaza and Lebanon has left civilians dead and injured, hospitals “overwhelmed” and attacks on healthcare on the rise, the UN warned on Tuesday.
2
1
4
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Multiple unending conflicts, climate change and a glaring disregard for long-established international humanitarian law are set to leave a staggering 305 million people in need of lifesaving assistance next year, the UN’s top aid official warned on Wednesday.
Embargo Wednesday, 4 December 2024 at 0600 CET / 0000 ET
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Rights Office on Friday warned about the plight of civilians in Ukraine after further attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure.
1
1
1
Edited News | ITU
An international panel has been set up to protect undersea communications cables that are crucial for international trade and security, the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Friday. The creation of the International Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience comes amid an ongoing investigation into the severing of two fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea, in less than 24 hours between 17 and 18 November.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | ITU
An estimated 5.5 billion people have access to the internet in 2024, an increase of 227 million people based on revised estimates for 2023, the UN specialized agency for telecommunications, ITU, said on Wednesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
Launch of World AIDS Day Report 2024—Take The Rights Path
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
A joint report issued this morning by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) paints a disturbing picture of the media landscape in the country since the Taliban takeover. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk says.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN human rights chief Volker Türk lent his weight to growing ceasefire calls in Lebanon on Tuesday, amid reports that the senior Israeli cabinet members were due to meet on a deal to end more than a year of conflict with Hezbollah militants, sparked by the war in Gaza