UN to suspend three quarters of medical aid in Yemen due to lack of funds

The United Nations will be forced to suspend three quarters of the medical aid programs it supports in war-torn Yemen unless emergency funding is secured soon, the spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has warned.

Currently, 41 such programs are running in the Middle Eastern nation, where the healthcare system has all but collapsed, and more than 30 of those are slated to be shut down, Rupert Colville said. The timing of the move could create additional hardship for Yemen, with its lack of capacity to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak.

“Our Office has received reports of hospitals turning away sick people, some of whom were struggling for breath and with a high fever. There are simply no beds, little equipment, few staff and next to no medicine. Sanitation and clean water are also in short supply,” the UN official said, urging international donors to provide immediate relief.

Yemen has officially registered around 500 Covid-19 cases, but the UN says the lack of testing means the true number of infections is far higher, especially in areas not under government control.

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