A senior UN official has warned authorities that Lebanon is facing one of the most disturbing periods in its history, with a health care system on the verge of collapse.
The warning came barely 24 hours after a brief spell of good news, during which the country administered its first coronavirus vaccine.
It also came as the World Health Organisation announced it had distributed more than six million doses of Covid-19 vaccines in a dozen countries across the Middle East.
On Monday, Dr Najat Rochdi, the UN's deputy special co-ordinator for Lebanon, said despite a rumbling political crisis that has seen the country without a permanent government for more than six months, the UN was working strategically with officials.
“We are witnessing one of the most disturbing periods in Lebanon’s history. There are growing fears it may get out of control, which would force people to pay a high price," Dr Rochdi said.
“At a time when all sectors are suffering from the ongoing repercussions of these overlapping crises, the health sector in Lebanon suffers in particular due to being saturated and overwhelmed. Hospitals may collapse further threatening public health.”
Dr Ahmed Al Mandhari, the organisation's regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, said 6.3 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered to people in 12 countries across the Middle East, with the vaccine's arrival in two further countries imminent.
“We are pleased that the first wave of vaccines provided via the Covax facility will be reaching people in the occupied Palestinian Territory and Tunisia in the coming weeks,” he said during a virtual briefing.
“The remaining 20 countries in our region are expecting an estimated 46 to 56 million doses of AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine doses via Covax facility during the first half of this year.”
Lebanon began inoculating people with the Pfizer-Biotech vaccine on Sunday, just hours after the first batch of 28,500 vaccines arrived in the country. Yet the vaccines, funded by a World Bank scheme, are a long way from meeting the country's needs for anything resembling herd immunity.
Dr Al Mandhari advised against complacency because of the vaccine distribution, warning the public health measures were still necessary.
“The cornerstone of the response remains our adherence to public health and social measures to suppress transmission, save lives, and prevent already saturated health systems from being overwhelmed.”
THE BIO
BIO:
Born in RAK on December 9, 1983
Lives in Abu Dhabi with her family
She graduated from Emirates University in 2007 with a BA in architectural engineering
Her motto in life is her grandmother’s saying “That who created you will not have you get lost”
Her ambition is to spread UAE’s culture of love and acceptance through serving coffee, the country’s traditional coffee in particular.
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
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Five personal finance podcasts from The National
To help you get started, tune into these Pocketful of Dirham episodes
·
Balance is essential to happiness, health and wealth
·
What is a portfolio stress test?
·
What are NFTs and why are auction houses interested?
·
How gamers are getting rich by earning cryptocurrencies
·
Should you buy or rent a home in the UAE?
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Copa del Rey
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
What is 'Soft Power'?
Soft power was first mentioned in 1990 by former US Defence Secretary Joseph Nye.
He believed that there were alternative ways of cultivating support from other countries, instead of achieving goals using military strength.
Soft power is, at its root, the ability to convince other states to do what you want without force.
This is traditionally achieved by proving that you share morals and values.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
SCHEDULE
Thursday, December 6
08.00-15.00 Technical scrutineering
15.00-17.00 Extra free practice
Friday, December 7
09.10-09.30 F4 free practice
09.40-10.00 F4 time trials
10.15-11.15 F1 free practice
14.00 F4 race 1
15.30 BRM F1 qualifying
Saturday, December 8
09.10-09.30 F4 free practice
09.40-10.00 F4 time trials
10.15-11.15 F1 free practice
14.00 F4 race 2
15.30 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi
