ASIA/YEMEN - Assaults on hospitals and health centers mainly affect children

Sana'a (Agenzia Fides) - Assaults on hospitals and health centers in Yemen continue to aggravate the well-being of children. This is what civil society denounces which in the Watchlist report describes in detail a series of systematic attacks against medical facilities and denounces limited access to assistance. According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, between March 2015 and March this year there were at least 160 attacks on health centers and their staff. Limited access to life-saving care has aggravated health problems in the Country.
According to the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), over half of the population in Yemen, including 8.1 million girls and children, have no access to medical care, an increase of more than 70% compared to the beginning of the conflict in March 2015. In November 2016, there was one hospital bed per 1.600 people and about 50% of healthcare facilities were inoperative. Interruption of vaccination programs has increased the risk of avoidable diseases such as polio and measles. According to Unicef, a child dies every 10 minutes in Yemen.
The Country is about to declare the state of famine for 14 million people suffering from food insecurity. In addition, about 70% of the population needs humanitarian assistance. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 4/5/2017)

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