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Protecting Health in Armed Conflict
2024

Protecting Health in Armed Conflict

Recent events have shown that despite overwhelming agreement, healthcare institutions are not universally protected during armed conflict. This report will describe historical and contemporary trends in all types of health emergencies (including infectious disease outbreaks, conflicts, natural disasters, chemical or radio-nuclear spills, and food contamination). In addition, this report will explore the relative share of health emergencies and their changes over time, aiming to clarify the impact of armed conflicts over time. The report will also analyze the incidence and frequency of attacks on health during armed conflicts in the period 2020-2024, with geographical disaggregation in accordance to World Health Organization (WHO) regions. The report will highlight the impact of armed conflict on the functioning of health systems, the health and wellbeing of health workers, and the associated consequences on the health of the population. The report will then review United Nations (UN) and multilateral governance mechanisms, their laws, standards, resolutions, and actions, etc. to hold perpetrators accountable. We will examine evidence, existing policy recommendations and calls to action from UN, multilateral bodies, non-state actors, civil society etc. to improve reporting, data, accountability and responses, and finally, assess strengths and weaknesses in the contemporary governance and global architecture. This report will propose actions and measures in response to identified challenges and weaknesses; including clear, concrete, innovative actions for countries of each income level. It will also Identify potential roles for all relevant stakeholders, including regional economic bodies, with particular focus on the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO) region.

Recent events have shown that despite overwhelming agreement, healthcare institutions are not universally protected during armed conflict. This report will describe historical and contemporary trends in all types of health emergencies (including infectious disease outbreaks, conflicts, natural disasters, chemical or radio-nuclear spills, and food contamination). In addition, this report will explore the relative share of health emergencies and their changes over time, aiming to clarify the impact of armed conflicts over time. The report will also analyze the incidence and frequency of attacks on health during armed conflicts in the period 2020-2024, with geographical disaggregation in accordance to World Health Organization (WHO) regions. The report will highlight the impact of armed conflict on the functioning of health systems, the health and wellbeing of health workers, and the associated consequences on the health of the population. The report will then review United Nations (UN) and multilateral governance mechanisms, their laws, standards, resolutions, and actions, etc. to hold perpetrators accountable. We will examine evidence, existing policy recommendations and calls to action from UN, multilateral bodies, non-state actors, civil society etc. to improve reporting, data, accountability and responses, and finally, assess strengths and weaknesses in the contemporary governance and global architecture. This report will propose actions and measures in response to identified challenges and weaknesses; including clear, concrete, innovative actions for countries of each income level. It will also Identify potential roles for all relevant stakeholders, including regional economic bodies, with particular focus on the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO) region.

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Richard Brennan, MBBS, MPH

Rick Brennan is Regional Emergency Director for the World Health Organization’s  (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office based in Cairo, Egypt.  He oversees WHO’s support to 22 countries for emergency preparedness, detection, and response, including major humanitarian crises, disease outbreaks, the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters, and technological emergencies.  Most recently his team has been supporting country responses to the crises in Gaza, Sudan, Lebanon, and Yemen, while also tackling outbreaks of cholera, dengue, and mpox. Previously, Rick spent seven years at WHO headquarters, where he was the Director of Emergency Operations, Director of Ebola Response and Coordination, and Director of Humanitarian Response.  He played central roles in establishing the Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care, the Global Health Cluster Unit, and the Emergency Medical Teams Initiative. Rick has extensive experience in emergencies in over 40 countries across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East.  He received his medical degree from the University of Sydney, completed emergency medicine training in Australia, and received a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. Following 12 years of clinical work, Rick joined the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention focusing on humanitarian and emergency management issues.  Thereafter, he spent 10 years as Health Director of the International Rescue Committee in New York, overseeing global humanitarian health operations. Prior to joining WHO in 2012, he led a large post-conflict health system support project in Liberia for JSI Research and Training. Rick has made several important contributions to advance global health emergency preparedness and response, including leading the development of WHO’s Emergency Response Framework.

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