Fatma Tanis

no longer had the resources to spend money in the markets.

And that was affecting local businesses.

It was also affecting these people in the program who were trying to build businesses.

So even a story that I was intentionally trying to do outside of the aid cuts ended up being dragged into it.

Thank you for having me.

Over the past two weeks since the beginning of the U.S.

and Israeli war with Iran, the WHO says it has verified 18 attacks on health care facilities in Iran, which killed at least eight health workers.

In Lebanon, where Israel has increased its bombardment,

The WHO says it has documented 25 attacks against health facilities, killing at least 16 health workers.

In a statement, the head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said health risks were, quote, soaring, with hundreds of thousands of people displaced in both countries.

He also said medical supply chains were disrupted due to airspace restrictions, causing significant backlogs in health supplies across 25 countries.

Fatma Tanis, NPR News.

The package includes some military aid to Egypt and Israel and funding for initiatives aimed at supporting democracy and health programs around the world.

It comes after a year of major cuts to foreign aid spending, largely supported by Republicans in Congress.

The bill does not include funding for programs that support gender diversity and equity in climate issues, but it does include $9.4 billion for global health programs aimed at curbing diseases.

and supporting maternal and child health, mostly maintaining funding levels from previous years.

Foreign aid experts who spoke to NPR say the package is expected to be signed if and when it lands on the president's desk.

But the administration could decide not to spend the funds as it did last year.

Fatma Tanis, NPR News.

The deal is intended to support Malawi's efforts to combat HIV-AIDS, malaria and shore up its disease surveillance and outbreak response.