Negotiators at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) must accelerate the end of fossil fuels, eliminate trillions in fossil fuel subsidies, and swiftly transition to clean, renewable energy to reap the health benefits of climate action, senior World Health Organization (WHO) officials urged at a press briefing on Tuesday. Despite the absence of explicit […] Continue reading ->
On her first visit back to Geneva since leaving her post as WHO Director-General in 2017, Dr Margaret Chan urged public health students to recognize “the power of collaboration” and to  “use their voice” to hold policymakers accountable for the changes that the promises that they make.  “When I was in WHO, there were a […] Continue reading ->
Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes.  Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading ->
A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading ->
WHO’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus repeated calls for a “humanitarian pause” in the fierce fighting between Israel and Hamas-controlled Gaza to allow for the resupply of Palestinian hospitals in Gaza, and treatment of injured and ill, saying “we are running out of words to describe the horror.” Speaking at a press briefing Thursday, […] Continue reading ->
A group of international health organisations representing 46 million healthcare workers, has published an open letter to the COP28 president Dr Ahmed Al Jaber demanding an “end to the fossil fuel era” at the upcoming UN Climate Conference in Dubai (29 November-12 December). Al Jaber, is the United Arab Emirates Minister of Industry and Advanced […] Continue reading ->
The WHO and the International Red Cross both issued weekend appeals to Israel to rescind its evacuation order on Al Quds Hospital, a major  healthcare facility in the northern Gaza Strip.  Israel has said that Al Quds, along with Al Shifa Hospital, are both being used as command and control centers by Hamas militants. But […] Continue reading ->