10 things you should know about the Syrian crisis

As the crisis continues, WHO's work in Syria remains crucial.

International outrage is mounting over a suspected chemical attack that killed scores of civilians in a rebel-held town in northwest Syria on Tuesday morning.
It remains unclear what kind of substance was used in the attack, but the World Health Organization said on Wednesday that some victims appeared to show signs of exposure to "nerve agents".
If confirmed, it would be one of the worst chemical attacks since Syria's civil war began six years ago.
Air strikes hit the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun around 7:00 am (0400 GMT) on Tuesday, and residents reported finding entire families "dead in their beds".
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights first reported that 58 civilians had died, but the monitoring group later updated the death toll to a total of 72, including 20 children and more than a dozen women.

Another 160 were wounded, with local medics said they had treated cases of suffocation, convulsions, pinpoint pupils, and rapid pulses.
Hours after the attack, as medics worked to treat the wounded in a hospital in Khan Sheikhun, two air strikes slammed into the facility and partially destroyed it.
"The images and reports coming from Idleb today leave me shocked, saddened and outraged. These types of weapons are banned by international law because they represent an intolerable barbarism," said Dr Peter Salama, Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme.
Syria chemical attack: US, UK, France condemn
Reports first emerged of the use of chemical weapons agents in Syria in 2012 and have since occurred with disturbing frequency, including repeated allegations of chlorine use in and around Aleppo last year, especially from September to December 2016. This latest reported incident is the most horrific since Ghouta in August 2013.
The Daesh militant group was also found to have used mustard gas in a 2015 attack in Syria.
Since 2012, WHO has been engaged in public health preparedness for the management of patients exposed to chemical or toxic gas. These actions have included issuing new clinical management protocols, preparing hospitals to receive and treat patients, distributing protective equipment to hospitals, and raising awareness amongst Syrians on how they can protect themselves against exposure and when to seek treatment.
In 2016, WHO trained 200 clinicians on the initial management of chemical weapons cases including pre-hospital decontamination, referral, triage and treatment. An additional 65 doctors in northern Syrian were trained by WHO's field office in Gaziantep, southern Turkey. The majority of doctors trained were from Idleb, the governorate where today's attack took place. However, given the numbers of patients requiring treatment, available trained staff is insufficient.
 

As the crisis continues, WHO's work in Syria remains crucial. Here are the ten things you should know about the Syrian crisis:

1. More than 10 million medical treatments were delivered throughout Syria in 2016
2. Wounded and critically ill patients were successfully evacuated from besieged areas including east Aleppo, Foah and Madaya.
3. More than 16 000 health workers received training to provide health care to Syrian refugees.
4.  Life-saving care was provided to people suffering from non-communicable diseases
5.  Millions of children across the country were vaccinated against deadly diseases
6.  Almost 13 million people are currently in need of medical services in 2017.
7. Attacks on health occur in Syria with alarming frequency.
8. Conditions are ripe for outbreaks of infectious diseases.
9. Access to some parts of the country is extremely challenging. Medicines have been removed from interagency convoys travelling to besieged and hard-to-reach areas.
10. Resources are stretched to the limit. In 2017, the Organization requires $ 164 million to carry out planned humanitarian response activities in 2016.
 

• MENA