Tunisian Hospitals Struggling to Cope With Rise in COVID-19 Cases

Nurses wearing personal protective equipment care for an intubated Covid-19 patient in an intensive care unit at a hospital in the town of Gabes in southwestern Tunisia | AFP
Nurses wearing personal protective equipment care for an intubated Covid-19 patient in an intensive care unit at a hospital in the town of Gabes in southwestern Tunisia | AFP
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Tunisian Hospitals Struggling to Cope With Rise in COVID-19 Cases

Nurses wearing personal protective equipment care for an intubated Covid-19 patient in an intensive care unit at a hospital in the town of Gabes in southwestern Tunisia | AFP
Nurses wearing personal protective equipment care for an intubated Covid-19 patient in an intensive care unit at a hospital in the town of Gabes in southwestern Tunisia | AFP

Tunisian authorities have warned that hospitals are struggling to cope with an influx of Covid-19 patients and urged residents to respect anti-virus measures to avoid another lockdown.

"If we don't manage to flatten this curve, which is really going up, we risk being overwhelmed," Dr. Hechmi Louzir, spokesman of the scientific committee for the fight against Covid-19, told AFP.

"The capacities of the Tunisian health system have not yet been saturated but we are starting to have some problems" in greater Tunis and the coastal city of Sousse, he said, warning of "a lack of human resources" in intensive care units.

Louzir said 345 Covid-19 patients were hospitalized, and 120 of them required oxygen support, as of October 1.

Tunisia, which had virtually contained the pandemic at the end of June, recording some 1,000 cases and 50 deaths, lifted most of the restrictions over the summer.

But the number of confirmed cases has now reached 20,000, including nearly 300 deaths.

On Friday, Health Minister Faouzi Mehdi said field hospitals were to be set up in several cities to help manage the rise in cases but also called for vigilance in respecting health protocols.

"The rigorous application of the measures taken by authorities is necessary but we are counting on the sense of responsibility of citizens," he said.

Obligatory mask-wearing in enclosed public spaces was imposed in early August but has been widely ignored by the public and many officials until recently, prompting many Tunisians to call for stricter enforcement of measures.

Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi has ruled out a nationwide lockdown such as was imposed in the spring so as not to put further pressure on Tunisia's beleaguered economy, but localized lockdowns are on the table.

A curfew was imposed Thursday in the coastal regions of Sousse and Monastir and some areas around Sidi Bouzid, in the interior of the country, with the suspension of weekly markets and the closure of venues.

Health workers have protested in recent days to demand more protective equipment.

"The poor public health situation stops us from working properly," said Othman Jallouli, a trade union leader from the General Health Federation.



Starmer: Britain Moving Jets to Middle East to Support Regional Security

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly Prime Ministers' Questions session in parliament in London, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly Prime Ministers' Questions session in parliament in London, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
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Starmer: Britain Moving Jets to Middle East to Support Regional Security

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly Prime Ministers' Questions session in parliament in London, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly Prime Ministers' Questions session in parliament in London, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Britain is moving additional military assets, including fighter jets, to the Middle East to provide support across the region, Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters on Saturday as he was en route to a Group of Seven meeting in Canada.

Iran and Israel traded missiles and airstrikes on Saturday, the day after Israel launched an air offensive against its old enemy, killing commanders and scientists and bombing nuclear sites in a stated bid to stop it building an atomic weapon.

"We are moving assets to the region, including jets, and that is for contingency support in the region," Starmer said.

Britain already has fighter jets in the Middle East as part of an operation to counter threats in Iraq and Syria.

Crews began deployment preparations on Friday morning, when it was clear the situation in the region was deteriorating, a spokesperson for the prime minister said.

Further refueling aircraft from British bases have been deployed, and additional fighter jets will be sent, the spokesperson added.

Iran warned the United States, United Kingdom and France that their bases and ships in the region will be targeted if they help stop Tehran's strikes on Israel, Iran state media reported Saturday.