MSF strongly condemns Israeli forcesā attacks against paramedics in Lebanon, including the recent killing of two Lebanese Civil Defence workers in Nabatiyeh, and reiterates its urgent call for the protection of medical and rescue personnel.
On May 12, Israeli forces struck a Lebanese Civil Defence rescue team that had departed from Al Najdeh Hospital, where MSF teams are present, to respond to a nearby strike. The attack killed 2 paramedics and injured a third, bringing the total of healthcare workers killed since the beginning of the Israeli escalation on March 2 to 110.
This latest attack has been part of an alarming pattern. Over recent weeks, MSF teams in Lebanon have been witnessing the consequences of airstrikes, drone strikes, and artillery fire, which are damaging hospitals, ambulances, and medical equipment, and killing or injuring civilians, health workers, and first responders.
MSF is supporting emergency medical services in the south of Lebanon, including the Lebanese Civil Defence team targeted in this incident, through the provision of ambulance equipment, first aid medication and supplies, fuel, and protective gear such as bulletāresistant helmets and vests.
Healthcare workers, first responders, ambulances, and medical facilities are protected under international humanitarian law. Their killing not only devastates families and colleagues, but further weakens already strained emergency response and healthcare systems.
Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces launched more than 600 drones and over 50 missiles across Ukraine, with Kyiv, western regions, and frontline areas among the hardest hit, including Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and other regions.
In Kyiv, a multi-storey residential building was severely damaged. The strike caused a partial collapse of the nine-storey building. At least 8 people were reportedly killed and more than 40 injured.
More than 90 staff members of MSF, who live and work in Kyiv, where the medical organisation has two coordination offices, are safe. However, our teams spent many hours sheltering underground as air raid alerts and attacks continued for more than 10 hours.
Damage to critical infrastructure has led to disruptions in water and electricity supply in Kyiv, as well as in Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kharkiv, and at least 11 other regions. Hundreds of households remain without electricity.
"We are treating a Syrian refugee who is a double amputee, due to an airstrike a few weeks ago. Her kidneys are failing, she is undergoing dialysis, and she woke to the news that her eight-year-old son had been killed in the air strike, while her daughter had been evacuated to undergo surgery."
This is the testimony of Dr Thienminh Dinh, MSF emergency doctor in Lebanon.
āIt was my fatherās suggestion. Iād started studying law at university. But after my dad made that suggestion, I decided to go to nursing school, and I think it was the most wonderful suggestion my dad ever made to me,ā says Lidah Fikaoussou Felicite, nursing activity manager in Mweso, Democratic Republic of Congo.
MSF nurses provide evidence-informed and person-centred quality of care to all patients, their families, and their communities.
Regular fighting between armed groups in Mweso area has exacerbated peopleās health and survival needs, where Lidah is part of an MSF team supporting Mweso General Reference Hospital and six health centres alongside the Ministry of Health.
Access to care in South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is deteriorating dangerously, against a backdrop of prolonged conflict and the gradual withdrawal of healthcare international organisations.
In Minova, in the Kalehe territory, the withdrawal of funding from the World Bank through the Multisectoral Nutrition and Health Programm (PMNS) has had immediate consequences for access to vital healthcare, particularly for pregnant women and newborns. More than 500 health facilities in South Kivu are affected by the suspension of the PMNS, even as measles outbreaks are ongoing, malnutrition is on the rise and medicine shortages are becoming more frequent.
MSF is calling on the World Bank and international partners to urgently reconsider the withdrawal of their funding in South Kivu, in order to prevent a major health crisis and avoidable deaths in a province
On 11 May in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, an Israeli forcesā tank fired two shells near Al Tayeb Clinic injuring at least 12 people while our medical teams were operating nearby. The impact occurred around 400m from the clinic.
Our teams treated all casualties from the attack, including a 6-year-old child with a severe leg injury and a pregnant woman with a chest injury. After receiving first aid and emergency treatment, all injured patients were transferred to Al-Shifa Hospital for further medical care
Daily attacks continue across Gaza. Since the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed more than 800 people and injured more than 2,000. This latest incident striking close to a medical facility shows that nowhere is safe in Gaza.
MSF call for Israel to respect the ceasefire and to ensure the protection of civilians.
Nurses are the cornerstone of healthcare around the world.
MSF relies on the dedicated efforts of more than 10,000 nurses worldwide - the largest professional group within our operations - to provide essential healthcare.
On International Nurses Day, MSF is celebrating our nurses and their skills, compassion and empathy as they accompany patients throughout their healthcare journeys, from new life to end-of-life, wherever they are.
We asked midwives in MSF what this yearās theme, "Empowered nurses save lives", means to them, and this is what they told us.
Read more at the link in our bio.
In March 2026, Russian short-range drones killed the highest number of civilians in Ukraine compared to any other type of weapon, according to the UN.
These drones pose a threat to the population near the front lines, particularly on roads used for evacuation and the delivery of humanitarian aid.
This video shows one such route, travelled by our medical teams every week.
