WHO: No doctors in 20% of Yemen

The UN has warned that the humanitarian situation in Yemen is deteriorating as a result of the current conflict.

In a statement published yesterday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said: “More than half of all health facilities in Yemen are closed or partially functioning.” It added: “There are critical shortages in medical doctors in more than 40 per cent of all districts.”

In a recent survey conducted by the WHO it was found that there were no doctors in 49 of the 276 surveyed districts, and there are between 1-2 doctors in less in 42 per cent of surveyed districts. It was also revealed that there are only 6.2 hospital beds for every 10,000 people. This is below the global benchmark, 10 hospital beds for every 10,000 people.

They have also warned that “as of 25 October 2016, more than 7,070 people have been killed and over 36,818 injured.”

Yemen has been locked in a bitter battle between Houthi rebels allied with forces loyal to ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh and government forces led by President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, along with local tribes and resistance forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition.