Exploring the role of City Networks in supporting urban resilience to COVID-19 in conflict-affected settings
It is estimated that by 2050, almost 70 percent of the global population will be residing in urban areas. In recent years, cities have become central in tackling key urban challenges and have demonstrated greater flexibility in policymaking and innovation than national governments. Cities are currently more inclined to learn from each other via networks, […]
Targeting healthcare in Syria: a military tactic or collateral damage?
Nine years of continuous conflict in Syria have borne witness to various atrocities against civilians, some of which amount to war crimes. Most of the involved parties have committed such atrocities, but the Government of Syria (GoS) and its allies remain at the top of the list of perpetrators. Out of a population of 21 […]
COVID-19 barriers and response strategies for refugees and undocumented migrants in Turkey
With more than 40 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, the pandemic is continuing to severely challenge health systems around the world. Countries with high numbers of refugees face an additional burden on COVID-19 preventive and curative services made available and accessible to refugees. Turkey hosts the largest number of refugees globally, with a total […]
“Having more women humanitarian leaders will help transform the humanitarian system”: challenges and opportunities for women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health
It is estimated that over 40% of the half a million humanitarian workers who provide frontline care during emergencies, wars and disasters, are women. Women are at the forefront of improving health for conflict-affected populations through service delivery, education and capacity strengthening, advocacy and research. Women are also disproportionately affected by conflict and humanitarian emergencies. […]
Sanctions on Syria
Hamid Yahiya Hussain and Kasturi Sen (September, 2020) present a biased perspective on the impact of EU and US sanction legislation in Syria. Western sanctions were introduced to promote accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Syrian conflict, the vast majority of which have been perpetrated by the Syrian Government and its […]
Partnerships with local organisations are vital for conducting health research in Syria—personal reflections
Throughout the 9 years of the Syrian conflict, humanitarian actors have accumulated enormous experience of dealing with this complex environment and collected substantial data—only a tiny fraction, however, is being used in informing practice and research. Partnering with academic institutions could enable these actors to foster their efforts in data collection, analysis and research production. These […]
Assessing the capacity for conflict and health research in Lebanon: a qualitative study
Conflicts pose new challenges for health systems, requiring rapid and practical approaches to meet emerging needs on the ground. Lebanon has been highly influenced by surrounding conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, especially the Syrian crisis. Strengthening research capacity to collect evidence on conflict in the MENA region and beyond is […]
Responding to health needs of women, children and adolescents within Syria during conflict: intervention coverage, challenges and adaptations
Women and children suffer disproportionately in armed-conflicts. Since 2011, the protracted Syrian crisis has fragmented the pre-existing healthcare system. Despite the massive health needs of women and children, the delivery of key reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health and nutrition (RMNCAH&N) interventions, and its underlying factors are not well-understood in Syria. Our objective was […]
COVID-19 response in northwest Syria: innovation and community engagement in a complex conflict
Despite lacking capacity and resources, the health system in the northwest Syria is using innovative approaches for the containment of COVID-19. Lessons drawn from previous outbreaks in the region, such as the polio outbreak in 2013 and the annual seasonal influenza, have enabled the Early Warning and Response Network, a surveillance system to develop mechanisms […]
The Profile of Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) research in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: Analyzing the NCD burden, research outputs and international research collaboration
Despite the rising risk factor exposure and non-communicable disease (NCD) mortality across the Middle East and the North African (MENA) region, public health policy responses have been slow and appear discordant with the social, economic and political circumstances in each country. Good health policy and outcomes are intimately linked to a research-active culture, particularly in […]