Yemen: Cholera outbreak reported in Sanaa prison

By Murad al-Arifi, Mohammed al-Samei

SANAA (AA) – A cholera outbreak has been reported in a Houthi-run prison in Yemeni capital Sanaa, according to a local rights activist.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency on Sunday, Abdel-Rahman Berman said 24 cholera cases were registered in the Habra prison.

“Four people were transported to hospital due to their deteriorating health conditions,” said Berman, a member of a government panel investigating human rights abuses.

He cited the degrading of sanitation and health systems for the outbreak of the disease.

Last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said a cholera outbreak has killed 51 people in Yemen since April.

It said that there were 2,752 suspected cholera cases and 58 more people have been confirmed as having the diarrheal disease.

On Saturday, UNICEF said 97 people have died of cholera and diarrhea outbreaks in war-torn Yemen.

Yemen has fallen into civil war in 2014 after Houthi rebels overran Sanaa and other provinces.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign aimed at reversing Houthi gains and shoring up Yemen’s pro-Saudi government.

According to UN, 11.3 percent of Yemen’s population has been forcibly displaced by the conflict.