A child with severe diarrhoea or cholera receives treatment at the Sab'een Hospital in Sana'a, Yemen,on 12 May 2017. (Photo: UNICEF/UN065873/Alzekri)
Jun 02, 2017
With about 70,000 cholera cases reported with nearly 600 fatalities in Yemen, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) today warned that an already dire situation for children is turning into a disaster.
"Cholera doesn't need a permit to cross a checkpoint or a border, nor does it differentiate between areas of political control," said UNICEF Regional Director, Geert Cappelaere, following his visit to the war-torn country.
"Cholera is spreading incredibly fast in Yemen [...] The number of suspected cases is expected to reach 130,000 within the next two weeks," he warned.
He said he witnessed harrowing scenes of children who were barely alive--tiny babies weighing less than two kilos--fighting for their lives at one of the few functioning hospitals he visited.
"But they are the lucky ones. Countless children around Yemen die every day in silence from causes that can easily be prevented or treated like cholera, diarrhoea or malnutrition," he said.
He said health workers are racing against time to prevent cholera from killing more children. They are dedicated and committed, despite not receiving their salaries in almost nine months.
For its part, UNICEF has been working with partners to respond since the start of this outbreak four weeks ago, providing safe water to over 1 million people across Yemen and delivered over 40 tonnes of lifesaving medical equipment--including medicine, oral rehydration salts, intravenous fluids and diarrhoea disease kits.
He called for stepping up global support, as UNICEF urgently requires $16 million to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.
"But most importantly, it is time for parties to the conflict to prioritise the boys and girls of Yemen and put an end to the fighting through a peaceful political agreement. This is the ultimate way to save the lives of children in Yemen, and to help them thrive," he said.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
With about 70,000 cholera cases reported with nearly 600 fatalities in Yemen, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) today warned that an already dire situation for children is turning into a disaster.
"Cholera doesn't need a permit to cross a checkpoint or a border, nor does it differentiate between areas of political control," said UNICEF Regional Director, Geert Cappelaere, following his visit to the war-torn country.
"Cholera is spreading incredibly fast in Yemen [...] The number of suspected cases is expected to reach 130,000 within the next two weeks," he warned.
He said he witnessed harrowing scenes of children who were barely alive--tiny babies weighing less than two kilos--fighting for their lives at one of the few functioning hospitals he visited.
"But they are the lucky ones. Countless children around Yemen die every day in silence from causes that can easily be prevented or treated like cholera, diarrhoea or malnutrition," he said.
He said health workers are racing against time to prevent cholera from killing more children. They are dedicated and committed, despite not receiving their salaries in almost nine months.
For its part, UNICEF has been working with partners to respond since the start of this outbreak four weeks ago, providing safe water to over 1 million people across Yemen and delivered over 40 tonnes of lifesaving medical equipment--including medicine, oral rehydration salts, intravenous fluids and diarrhoea disease kits.
He called for stepping up global support, as UNICEF urgently requires $16 million to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.
"But most importantly, it is time for parties to the conflict to prioritise the boys and girls of Yemen and put an end to the fighting through a peaceful political agreement. This is the ultimate way to save the lives of children in Yemen, and to help them thrive," he said.
With about 70,000 cholera cases reported with nearly 600 fatalities in Yemen, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) today warned that an already dire situation for children is turning into a disaster.
"Cholera doesn't need a permit to cross a checkpoint or a border, nor does it differentiate between areas of political control," said UNICEF Regional Director, Geert Cappelaere, following his visit to the war-torn country.
"Cholera is spreading incredibly fast in Yemen [...] The number of suspected cases is expected to reach 130,000 within the next two weeks," he warned.
He said he witnessed harrowing scenes of children who were barely alive--tiny babies weighing less than two kilos--fighting for their lives at one of the few functioning hospitals he visited.
"But they are the lucky ones. Countless children around Yemen die every day in silence from causes that can easily be prevented or treated like cholera, diarrhoea or malnutrition," he said.
He said health workers are racing against time to prevent cholera from killing more children. They are dedicated and committed, despite not receiving their salaries in almost nine months.
For its part, UNICEF has been working with partners to respond since the start of this outbreak four weeks ago, providing safe water to over 1 million people across Yemen and delivered over 40 tonnes of lifesaving medical equipment--including medicine, oral rehydration salts, intravenous fluids and diarrhoea disease kits.
He called for stepping up global support, as UNICEF urgently requires $16 million to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.
"But most importantly, it is time for parties to the conflict to prioritise the boys and girls of Yemen and put an end to the fighting through a peaceful political agreement. This is the ultimate way to save the lives of children in Yemen, and to help them thrive," he said.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.