Key facts
- Yemeni hospitals in Taiz are facing critical fuel shortages.
- Newborn babies are at risk due to reduced incubator capacity.
- Fighting has blocked humanitarian supplies and key supply routes.
- Hundreds of thousands are affected by the deepening humanitarian crisis.
- Fuel prices have surged significantly in Taiz city.
- Malnutrition rates among children in Taiz and southern governorates are high.
Fuel shortages in Yemen's Taiz city have severely impacted healthcare, forcing the Yemeni-Swedish Hospital for Maternity and Childhood to reduce its incubator capacity from 40 to 10, endangering newborns. Fighting since October 3 has blocked humanitarian supplies and key routes like the Taiz-Aden corridor, exacerbating shortages of water, food, and fuel.
According to WHO, 42 health facilities in Taiz are experiencing acute shortages of fuel, oxygen, medicines, and medical supplies. Fuel prices have surged to 2,000 Yemeni rials per litre. Oxfam highlighted the catastrophic impact on daily lives, citing a dialysis patient's increased travel costs.
Beyond Taiz, Médecins Sans Frontières reported power outages affecting operating theatres and intensive care units in Aden and Lahj due to fuel shortages. UN agencies warned of worsening hunger and malnutrition, with over 800,000 people in Taiz and surrounding areas cut off from food assistance. UNICEF reported that over 11,500 children in Taiz suffer from severe acute malnutrition.