Houthi practices in Yemen cause outbreak of corona pandemic

Nora Bandari

The Houthi militia in Yemen acts according to the Iranian approach, initially denying the existence of new cases of the corona virus in Yemen and punishing all those who disclose otherwise, which led to a major outbreak of the pandemic in Sanaa and its countryside. The World Health Organization (WHO) and local and international organizations have issued many warnings regarding the outbreak of the new strain in Yemen, where half of its health facilities are out of service because of the war started by the Iranian-backed militia.

According to Yemeni medical sources, the majority of hospitals in Sanaa suffer from a lack of equipment necessary to control the virus, amid fears of a large-scale outbreak, especially in light of the Houthis’ continued refusal to acknowledge the resurgence of the corona pandemic, the increase in the militia’s repression of medical personnel, and imposing restrictions on them in its areas of control.

On January 6, workers in the field of epidemiological surveillance in Yemen expressed their concern about the return of corona with its new, more deadly strain, in light of the militias’ continued adoption of the same wrong policies that accompanied the first wave, which made the capital Sanaa a semi-disaster city in which hundreds of its residents paid with their lives for the inaction and indifference of the Houthis.

Medical staff suffers

Although medical personnel in Yemen are making efforts to control the pandemic, the Houthis’ repressive policies prevent them from performing their duties. Therefore, a number of medical personnel, including doctors, nurses and technicians, arrived in the Yemeni governorate of Ibb on January 4 to organize a protest due to the Houthis obstructing the payment of their salaries.

Herd immunity

Yemeni political researcher Mahmoud al-Taher told the Reference that in the areas under Houthi control, the militia members kill anyone infected with corona, even if they are among their own members, which confirms that they hold nothing dear.

Taher said that the talk about the return of the corona pandemic in this way may be UN leaks with the aim of putting pressure on the Houthis and the Yemeni government to stop the fighting and to comply with the draft joint declaration drafted by Iran in support of the Houthis.

There are many doctors who died during the first wave of the corona virus because they were secretly going to the sick to treat them amid intense Houthi monitoring of the sick, Taher pointed out.