Health crisis in Yemen
Despite being a completely treatable disease, thousands of people have died from the outbreak of cholera unleashed in Yemen in 2017. The health care system has been decimated by years of unrelenting war. Supplies and medical care are scarce as is the access to drinking water and sanitation.
It took a long journey for this severely malnourished infant coming from the village of Saqayn to reach the Al-Salam Hospital in Sa'ada. The protracted conflict and the difficulty of movement of goods have resulted in a major food crisis in Yemen. According to the latest figures, almost 16 million Yemenis are affected by the food crisis engulfing the country. CC BY-NC-ND / ICRC / Karrar al-Moayyad
The outbreak of cholera in Yemen infected a staggering million people. Despite being a completely treatable disease, thousands of people died from the disease.
In addition to cholera, other contagious diseases such as diphtheria are spreading in the country. In a country where supplies and medical care are scarce, a lack of access to drinking water doesn't bode well for the ongoing health crisis.
Diabetes causes a quarter of limb amputations at ICRC centres in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. People aren't getting medical treatment before it's too late. Conflict is destroying Yemen's health care system, leaving many thousands without life-saving treatment, including those with chronic illnesses.
More than 80% of Yemen's population lacks food, fuel, drinking water and access to health care services, which makes it particularly vulnerable to diseases that can generally be cured or eradicated elsewhere in the world. The health care system has been decimated by years of unrelenting war in Yemen.
He is forced to clean himself with dirty water.
— ICRC (@ICRC) May 28, 2019
He is 1 of 2 million people displaced in #Yemen.
He has lost his childhood to war.
He deserves better. pic.twitter.com/GbM8Y2s8CX
The ICRC is working round the clock to bring help to these people in Yemen in every way possible. We are supplying hospitals and health facilities with medicines and emergency medical supplies so they can treat the wounded. And we continue to work closely with the Yemen Red Crescent Society and the local authorities.
During the first semester of 2018, the ICRC provided much needed relief aid to roughly 500,000 Yemenis affected by conflict. We were also able to help over two million people access clean water and better sanitation – essentials in these troubled times.
But there is so much more to do. With your help we can continue delivering life-saving aid.
