TEHRAN – The Iranian Medical Council has called on the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the World Medical Association (WMA) to take immediate action against the use of patients’ lives as a tool of political and military pressure.
In an official letter to the three international organizations, the council said the US government was violating international humanitarian and criminal law through inhumane measures, including economic blockade and pharmaceutical sanctions against Iran, turning patients’ lives into an instrument of political and military coercion.
Mohammad Raiszadeh, head of the Iranian Medical Council, urged the leaders of international health organizations to respond promptly and responsibly to what he described as inhumane acts and the weaponization of medical resources in armed conflicts.
He cited previous reports of direct attacks on healthcare facilities, medical infrastructure, and pharmaceutical facilities, adding that the US attack on the Touska, a vessel carrying medicines and, in particular, vital supplies for dialysis patients, was another clear example of directly endangering patients’ health and lives.
Raiszadeh said Iran’s medical community expected the WHO, WMA, ICRC, and other relevant international bodies to respond appropriately and responsibly to the use of medicines, healthcare facilities, medical shipments, and patients’ lives as instruments of warfare.
He also called for effective measures to ensure safe, rapid, and unhindered routes for the delivery of medicines, medical equipment, and pharmaceutical raw materials.
An effective response from institutions whose very purpose is to protect human health, life, and dignity would represent the fulfillment of their moral and historic responsibilities to humanity, he added.
Raiszadeh stressed that Iran’s medical community and people would not forget these events and would pursue accountability, in accordance with international law, for both those responsible for the actions and institutions that remained silent in the face of them.
As of March 27, data compiled from WHO, the Iranian Red Crescent, and national health agencies reveal a targeted erosion of medical neutrality. A total of 292 medical and relief centres, including hospitals, pharmacies, and primary health clinics, have been damaged or destroyed.
This destruction has forced 13 hospitals completely out of service, while another seven have been fully evacuated under duress because of proximity to danger zones.
The emergency response capacity has been further crippled by the destruction of 48 ambulances and rescue vehicles, as well as an emergency medical helicopter.
The assault on health care is not merely incidental but systemic. Under the Geneva Conventions and the UN Charter, medical personnel and facilities must be protected at all times unless used for military purposes. Yet, verified reports indicate US–Israeli attacks on health facilities and the killing of at least eight health-care workers, doctors, nurses, and emergency first responders in Iran.
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