Israel offered to help Lebanon with COVID equipment, supplies

Israel offered to provide hospitals in Lebanon with ventilators to treat Coronavirus patients, according to German News Agency on Thursday.

According to Israeli media, the offer came from the Director-general of the Israeli Health Ministry Hezi Levi “due to the severe shortage of such devices in Lebanon,” he said.

Levi said that after the Beirut port explosion, Israel offered to provide the Lebanese government with humanitarian help, but Lebanon refused to receive this aid. 

In another development, according to the The Jerusalem Post , former Coordinator of Government Activities Eitan Dangot advised Israel to offer oxygen tanks to Lebanon through the United Nations in order to build trust with the Lebanese public, in a tweet on Wednesday night.

“Lebanon needs oxygen balloons – Israel would be wise and just if it proposes through the UN to deliver oxygen balloons as a gesture and humanitarian aid,” wrote Dangot.

On Wednesday, the Syrian government offered 75 tons of oxygen to Lebanon during a visit by its caretaker health minister in response to a request for Covid-19 assistance.

Lebanon continues to experience record number of deaths and cases. On Wednesday, it recorded 3,856 new cases of coronavirus and 53 deaths, which raised the total number of cases to 448,721 and 5,903 deaths.