Speaking to reporters after the handover ceremony, Health Minister Hassan Al-Ghubash said that the donated lung ventilators are badly needed and will be allocated to intensive care units in cardiac surgery hospitals in the cities of Damascus and Aleppo.

The donation carries a meaning of love and peace, and the equipment supports the ministry’s efforts to fight Covid-19, the Minister noted.

For his part, the Vatican’s ambassador to Damascus, Cardinal Mario Zenari, said that the Supreme Pontiff had also donated two lung respirators for private hospitals in Damascus and Aleppo.

Syria has been under a suffocating blockade imposed by the United States and the European Union that prevents the import of medical equipment and hinders the country’s efforts to recover the health sector, hit by the war that has lasted 10 years and the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

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