Hospitals in Beirut’s southern suburbs are struggling to maintain operations under the threat of Israeli airstrikes , as medical staff warn that the facilities have become the only providers of healthcare for residents in the heavily targeted area.
Medical institutions in the area continue to operate despite security risks, logistical pressures and fears that the Israeli assault could expand.
In recent days, evacuation warnings were issued to Al-Sahel Hospital and Bahman Hospital as Israeli strikes intensified across Beirut’s southern suburbs, raising concerns that other hospitals in the area could also be threatened.
The Lebanese Red Cross has transferred several patients from the affected hospitals to other facilities in Beirut.
In a statement, it said that "six patients were transferred from Al-Sahel Hospital and 14 patients from Bahman Hospital", adding that efforts were continuing to evacuate patients from Al-Rasoul Al-Aazam Hospital while waiting for the health ministry to secure places for them elsewhere.
An Israeli strike on a building adjacent to Bahman Hospital in the Haret Hreik area caused significant damage to the medical facility.
Ali Kreim, director general of Bahman Hospital, told The New Arab's sister outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that hospitals must remain protected despite potential military attacks on the area.
"If the conscience of the international community is still alive to support the neutrality of hospitals during military operations, we say that we are not a partisan institution, but a health institution that must remain in service of the people," he said.
Hospital administrators say emergency plans have been activated and that sensitive departments are being protected, while preparations are made for potential mass casualties.
Mazzen Allameh, director general of Al-Sahel Hospital, said the facility initially believed the evacuation warning might be a hoax before learning that nearby hospitals had received similar threats.
"We began evacuating patients. Some families came to take their relatives in their own cars, while the Red Cross evacuated six patients," he told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed .
Despite the escalating situation, several hospitals say they have no plans to close or evacuate completely.
Hassan Alik, director general of Saint George Medical Hospital in the Hadath area, said the hospital continues to receive patients for a range of treatments.
"The hospital is still receiving all medical cases. It is not dedicated only to war casualties," he said.
Hospital officials say medical supplies are currently sufficient for several months if the conflict does not intensify.
Alik said supplies could last "at least three months" as long as supply chains remain open.
Al-Rasoul Al-Aazam Hospital, one of Lebanon’s largest university hospitals with a capacity of more than 300 beds, is also continuing to operate while focusing on emergency care and surgeries.
Director general Hussein Shukair said the hospital currently has around 50 patients and remains fully functional.
"We of course fear the hospital could be targeted… but we will remain to fulfil our humanitarian duty," he told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed .
The hospital has implemented a rotating shift system for staff after some medical workers fled with their families due to the conflict.
Meanwhile, Al-Zahraa Hospital in the Jnah area has reduced its occupancy to around 50 percent in order to prepare for potential casualties from Israeli strikes.
Hussein Meshimesh, director of medical care at the hospital, said the facility is continuing to treat patients in departments such as dialysis and chemotherapy while preparing for an influx of wounded.
Across Lebanon’s healthcare system, hospitals are coordinating closely to distribute patients and maintain capacity.
Pierre Yared, head of Lebanon’s private hospitals syndicate, said patients from threatened facilities had been redistributed across Beirut hospitals.
"There is strong solidarity during these tense times," he told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed .
He added that hospitals currently have fuel supplies for about a week to ten days and medicine stocks for around a month, while coordination with suppliers aims to secure medicines for several months.
Although no hospital has yet been directly targeted, Israeli strikes near medical facilities and evacuation warnings have placed the healthcare system in Beirut’s southern suburbs under growing pressure.