40 firefighters and ambulance workers killed in Lebanon over past 3 days, health minister says

 Forty ambulance and firefighting staff have been killed in the past three days across Lebanon, Health Minister Firass Abiad said Thursday.

Abiad said 97 paramedics and firefighters in the country have been killed by Israeli strikes since October 8 last year, as the death toll across the country from the same date climbed to 1,974, of whom 127 are children and 261 are women.

Overnight, seven medics working for Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Authority were killed by an Israeli strike on central Beirut.

“We know that there are international laws protecting medical institutions, ambulances and health care workers,” the health minister said.