A United Nations (UN), agency and a Lebanese Health source on Friday said at least five residents of a Palestinian refugee camp in Eastern Lebanon tested positive for coronavirus, first of such cases among refugees in the country.
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said the first patient was diagnosed on Wednesday in the Wavel refugee camp in the area of Baalbeck.
UNRWA, which is responsible for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, said the patient was a Palestinian refugee from Syria who was residing in the camp, home to more than 2,000 people.
According to the agency, further testing conducted in the Wavel camp revealed four more positive cases, all were close family members of the first patient.
It added that the first patient had been transferred to the Rafik Hariri Hospital in Beirut, the main facility treating coronavirus patients in Lebanon.
“The four other individuals are observing home isolation, and their health condition does not require hospitalization,” UNRWA said.
Meanwhile, a source at the Lebanese Health Ministry said a medical team had conducted coronavirus testing on all people who were in contact with the first patient.
According to witnesses, Palestinian committees running the camp have closed all its entrancea and stopped people from entering or exiting the site.
UNRWA said it was preparing to use a centre in Southern Lebanon as a medical isolation facility for future cases.
There are an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees living in 12 camps scattered across Eastern, Southern and Northern Lebanon as well as Beirut.
