Libyan Hospitals Helpless amid Spike in COVID-19 Cases

Nurses care for a patient infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a quarantine center, in Misrata, Libya. (Reuters)
Nurses care for a patient infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a quarantine center, in Misrata, Libya. (Reuters)
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Libyan Hospitals Helpless amid Spike in COVID-19 Cases

Nurses care for a patient infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a quarantine center, in Misrata, Libya. (Reuters)
Nurses care for a patient infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a quarantine center, in Misrata, Libya. (Reuters)

A number of Libyan hospitals are struggling to treat the surge in coronavirus cases, especially with limited capabilities and shortage in health care professionals.

The National Center for Disease Control of Libya reported 1,076 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally in the country to 41,368, with 23,453 recoveries and 621 death.

In recent days, Libya recorded over a thousand new cases per day. Tripoli topped the infections with 463, followed by Gharyan with 118 and Benghazi with 92.

Head of the PCR testing unit at Sabha Medical Center, Khadija al-Abbasi, announced that the center received a large number of confirmed and suspected cases.

In a video statement, Abbasi said that the closure of quarantine centers in the south led to the jump in the cases arriving at the center, which hampered medical staff.

She indicated that people accompanying patients and visitors at the Center may contribute to transmitting the virus, announcing that all doctors and staff are being tested.

A source at the National Center for Disease Control in Sabha warned that people are ignoring the authorities’ health warnings and are not following preventive measures, which is leading to the spread of the disease.

He told Asharq al-Awsat that all medical centers and hospitals in Libya are suffering from a lack of medical equipment and shortage in health care staff, similar to the situation in Sabha Medical Center.

Meanwhile, the Medical Advisory Committee of the interim government in eastern Libya announced that a specialized coronavirus training team visited the northeastern COVID-19 Shahat Hospital, to ensure the protocols and recommendations are followed.



Netanyahu Says Israel Is Establishing a New Security Corridor across Gaza

An internally displaced Palestinian walks at the site of a UN clinic following an Israeli airstrike, in the Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, 02 April 2025. (EPA)
An internally displaced Palestinian walks at the site of a UN clinic following an Israeli airstrike, in the Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, 02 April 2025. (EPA)
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Netanyahu Says Israel Is Establishing a New Security Corridor across Gaza

An internally displaced Palestinian walks at the site of a UN clinic following an Israeli airstrike, in the Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, 02 April 2025. (EPA)
An internally displaced Palestinian walks at the site of a UN clinic following an Israeli airstrike, in the Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, 02 April 2025. (EPA)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is establishing a new security corridor across the Gaza Strip.

In a statement on Wednesday, he described it as the Morag corridor, using the name of a Jewish settlement that once stood between Rafah and Khan Younis, suggesting it would run between the two southern cities.

His comments came as Palestinian officials at hospitals inside Gaza said Israeli strikes overnight and into Wednesday had killed more than 40 people, nearly a dozen of them children.

The Israeli government has long maintained a buffer zone just inside Gaza along its security fence and has greatly expanded since the war against Hamas began in 2023. Israel says the buffer zone is needed for its security, while Palestinians view it as a land grab that further shrinks the narrow coastal territory, home to around 2 million people.