World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has praised the people and authorities of Tenerife for what he described as an extraordinary act of “moral courage” during the evacuation and public health response involving passengers from the MV Hondius.

In a heartfelt message issued after the operation, Dr. Tedros reflected on standing at the port of Granadilla de Abona last Monday, watching the final passengers safely disembark from the ship and begin their journeys home under the supervision of health authorities.

More than 120 passengers from 23 countries were safely evacuated and transferred under strict public health protocols following an outbreak onboard the vessel. WHO said passengers are now being monitored and cared for either during transit or after returning to their home countries.

“They arrived in fear and uncertainty,” Dr. Tedros wrote. “They left carrying something they could not have expected to find in Tenerife: the dignity of being cared for by strangers from your community, and people around the world, who chose to help.”

The WHO chief praised the coordinated response between Spanish authorities, healthcare workers, and international public health teams, saying the operation demonstrated how science and solidarity can work together during a crisis.

“The risk assessment held. The protocols worked. The corridor held. Science and solidarity operated in coordination, as they must, as they can, when we trust each other,” he said.

However, Dr. Tedros stressed that the event should not only be remembered as a successful logistical operation, but also as a humanitarian response rooted in compassion.

“What happened here in Tenerife was something rarer than competence,” he said. “It was moral courage — the willingness of an entire island, an entire nation, to say: these are human beings, and we will not turn away from them.”

He specifically commended the government of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and praised ministers Mónica García, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, and Ángel Víctor Torres for their leadership during the crisis.

The port authorities at Granadilla and healthcare workers involved in the evacuation were also recognized for carrying out the complex operation “with warmth, speed and care.”

Dr. Tedros also paid tribute to Captain Jan Dobrogowski and the 26-member crew of the MV Hondius, who remained onboard as the ship continued its voyage to the Netherlands.

“You held your passengers together through weeks of grief and confinement. History will not forget that,” he wrote.

The WHO chief offered a particularly emotional message to the people of Tenerife, thanking residents for welcoming the passengers quietly and compassionately during a time of uncertainty.

“You may never meet the passengers and crew who transited your port,” he wrote. “But those 150 people and their families know that somewhere in the Atlantic, there was an island community that said ‘yes.’”

The operation was overshadowed by tragedy after three people died in connection with the outbreak onboard the ship. Dr. Tedros acknowledged the grief of the families affected, saying the successful evacuation does not erase their loss.

He also extended condolences following the death of a member of Tenerife’s Guardia Civil, who reportedly suffered a heart attack while serving during the emergency operation.

“His service will not be forgotten,” Dr. Tedros said.

Calling solidarity “the best immunity we have,” the WHO Director-General said Tenerife had set an example for the world at a time when fear and division often dominate global crises.

In a personal reflection, Dr. Tedros revealed that he briefly walked through Tenerife alone after the final passengers departed and was deeply moved by the warmth shown by local residents.

“I found Tenerife to be genuinely beautiful — the place, yes, but above all the people,” he wrote.

He added that he hopes to return to the island one day under happier circumstances, this time with his family rather than as part of an emergency response mission.

The WHO chief concluded by thanking WHO teams from headquarters and the organization’s Europe office in Copenhagen, while noting that the work continues until every passenger and crew member completes quarantine and reunites safely with loved ones.