Syria, Lebanon hit by cholera, says Red Cross

GENEVA (AA) – Communities living in Syria and Lebanon, already struggling with violence and an economic crash, have been hit by cholera, the International Committee of the Red Cross has said.

Cases of cholera and acute watery diarrhea gripping Syria and Lebanon add to the suffering of the people in the two neighboring countries, said the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Separately, the World Health Organization said there are 29 cholera outbreaks worldwide, but it did not give specific numbers for Syria and Lebanon.

“After decades without a single case of cholera, the outbreaks that have been recently declared in Lebanon and Syria mark an unwelcome comeback in those countries,” according to the WHO.

“This is part of a worsening pattern across the region and the globe,” said the world health body, as eight of 22 countries in the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region are grappling with cholera and acute watery outbreaks of diarrhea.”

Cholera can cross borders, placing the Eastern Mediterranean Region and neighboring countries at increased risk and heightening the need for urgent control, warned the WHO, describing it as “a wake-up call.”

Areas of high population density, such as detention facilities and refugee settlements, are particularly vulnerable, said the ICRC.