Cholera in Lebanon: A new epidemic in an on-going endemic of weak infrastructure.

On October 6, 2022, the WHO declared the start of a cholera outbreak in Lebanon, the first cholera outbreak since 1993. The aim of this review is to advance the evolution of the cholera epidemic in Lebanon and its underlying risk factors. Early during the outbreak, the majority of confirmed cases were reported among displaced Syrian refugees living in suboptimal conditions; however, three weeks following the former, cholera spread nationwide. This spread was exacerbated by the decline in water treatment investments, lack of electric supply in water treatment plants and collapsing healthcare and economic infrastructures. Addressing the structural root causes is urgently needed in order to mitigate the re-emergence of cholera and other infectious diseases spreading among vulnerable populations and thus threatening national and regional health security.