Second Coronavirus Wave Hits Houthi-Held Sanaa

Arab World

January 5th, 12:26pm

Sanaa – Asharq Al-Awsat

Security men wearing protective masks stand on a street in Sanaa, Yemen, May 6, 2020. (REUTERS)

Medical sources have confirmed that a second wave of coronavirus infections has overrun the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, where medics are oppressed by Iran-backed Houthi militias and true data about the pandemic is concealed. This coincides with local and international health organizations warning of the spread of the new coronavirus strain in the war-torn country. Dozens of coronavirus infections have been detected in the Houthi-run capital and its countryside, medics based in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat, adding that health centers are flooding with potential cases. Health workers said that the capital's hospitals are still receiving new cases daily, most of which suffer from coronavirus symptoms such as fever, dry cough, fatigue, sore throat, shortness of breath and loss of the sense of smell and taste. Physicians expressed their fear of a second wave of the pandemic hitting hard in light of the absence of badly needed preventative measures, such as social distancing and wearing face masks. Last July, Houthis eased restrictions on imposed on social gatherings, restaurants, cafeterias, public parks, and sports stadiums. Notably, Sanaa hospitals are poorly equipped and are not prepared to withstand a spike in infections. Houthi denial towards the true gravity of the spread of the virus threatens to exacerbate the situation. More so, the Iran-backed group’s tight restrictions on the health sector have impeded the work of pandemic monitors and central laboratories in Sanaa. This has led to a lack of verifiable data on the spread of the virus. Sanaa residents accuse Houthis of having deliberately left them exposed to the virus, with some reporting that the capital is panic-stricken. Pandemic monitors, for their part, expressed grave concerns about the resurgence of coronavirus cases given that Houthis continue to adopt hazardous policies that promote the spread of the virus.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2723026/second-coronavirus-wave-hits-houthi-held-sanaa