GENEVA: The World Health Organization is finding alternative routes to deliver emergency medical supplies from its Dubai hub to crisis zones such as Lebanon
via long overland journeys, an official said, but rising fuel costs could hamper shipments if the war in Iran persists.
The global health body’s aid shipments from the UAE were previously completely frozen as air, sea, and land routes were restricted by the Iran conflict, which began on Feb. 28 with US-Israeli air strikes.
Iran responded by firing drones and missiles at energy and other infrastructure across the Gulf, while Hezbollah pulled Lebanon into the regional war by firing on Israel in support of Iran.
To tackle the shipment problems, the UAE has provided funding to truck supplies like insulin and emergency kits to Lebanon — where over 3,000 people have been wounded — via Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria, as well as funding to charter flights to other hotspots like Kabul, Afghanistan, said the WHO official.
“What you’re getting is cost increases and lead time increases as we do the workarounds,” Paul Molinaro, WHO head of Operations, Support and Logistics, said on Thursday.
A UAE official confirmed that it was providing support to partners.
But Molinaro said the Dubai backlog has not completely cleared, citing smaller medical shipments that remain stranded.
He said two shipping companies had waived insurance surcharges.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said it planned to truck ambulances to Lebanon overland from Dubai, but that road costs were up by around 30 percent, and there were border delays.
Asked about the risk of drug shortages, Molinaro said he was more concerned about oil price hikes leading to exhausted fuel stocks in poorer countries and aid stocks becoming stranded.
“You could be seeing serious issues 6 to 8 weeks down the line,” he said.
“I think we’re going to feel that quicker than shortages of drugs and of plastics and of equipment.”
