Syria Sends Oxygen Aid to Lebanon as Hassan Visits
The Syrian government Wednesday offered 75 tons of oxygen to neighboring Lebanon during a visit by its caretaker health minister in response to a request for Covid-19 assistance.
"We will supply Lebanon with 75 tons of oxygen in instalments of 25 tons a day for a period of three days," Syrian Health Minister Hasan al-Ghabbash told reporters after a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart, Hamad Hassan.
The oxygen shipment, which will be delivered "immediately", will not strain Syria's supplies, Ghabbash said, adding the first instalment was being handed over to Hassan on Wednesday.
For his part, Hassan said his ministry requested the aid to save hundreds of Lebanese lives threatened by an oxygen shortage.
"We have around 1,000 patients on breathing aid in Lebanon's emergency rooms" and oxygen supplies "that honestly are only enough to last for today," he said.
Lebanon was expecting to receive new oxygen shipments from abroad but stormy weather conditions have delayed arrivals, Hamad said.
"In spite of high need and rising demand for oxygen in Syria, authorities granted us our request," he added, praising Damascus for its swift assistance.
Hassan also told al-Manar TV that the oxygen was a "direct gift" from Syrian President Bashar Assad, who responded to Lebanon's humanitarian request for the oxygen.
Official dealings between Damascus and the Lebanese government have been limited since the early days of the Syrian conflict which erupted in 2011.
Lebanon is grappling with a coronavirus outbreak that compounded its worst economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.
The country of more than six million has recorded a total of 444,865 Covid-19 cases, including 5,858 deaths since last year.
The outbreak has overwhelmed a medical sector already grappling with a drastic depreciation of the Lebanese pound against the U.S. dollar.
The currency plunge has made medical imports, including oxygen, more expensive, leading to limited supplies.
War-battered Syria too is grappling with its own virus outbreak on top of an economic crisis aggravated by the financial crunch in Lebanon.
A health ministry official warned last week that hospital beds for Covid-19 patients in intensive care units have run out across Damascus.
Syria has recorded 17,743 cases, among them 1,183 deaths, in government-held areas.
Source: Agence France Presse, Associated Press
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