WHO scales up health response as escalating conflict deepens health needs in Yemen [EN/AR]

EXTRACTO DEL FEED · ATRIBUIDO AL MEDIO

Country: Yemen

Source: World Health Organization

Please refer to the attached file.

23 September 2026, Aden, Yemen – WHO is scaling up its emergency health response in Yemen as the latest escalation of conflict increases the number of casualties, drives displacement and places additional pressure on an already overstretched health system.

More than 122,000 people have been displaced by the recent escalation of conflict across eight governorates, many of them families who have already experienced displacement and are arriving with limited resources and interrupted access to health care. Between 6 August and 18 September, 3,672 casualties were reported, including 674 deaths and 2,998 injuries. Between 13 and 18 September alone, 680 new casualties were recorded.

Marib continues to account for the largest cumulative casualty burden, with 1,690 reported casualties, followed by Taiz and the West Coast with 1,349. Lahj has become the most active front during the latest reporting period, recording 284 casualties between 13 and 18 September and placing increasing pressure on hospitals, trauma services and referral systems.

The escalation comes as Yemen’s health system is already struggling to meet existing needs. Of 5,415 health service delivery units assessed for functionality, around 60% are fully functioning, 35% are partially functioning and 4% are non-functioning. Full trauma care services are available in only 6% of assessed facilities.

At the same time, Yemen continues to face multiple health threats, including cholera and acute watery diarrhoea, measles, dengue, diphtheria and malnutrition. More than 18 000 suspected measles cases and 106 associated deaths have been reported in 2026, alongside 390 diphtheria cases and 13 deaths.

Displacement, overcrowding and disruption to essential health services could further increase these risks while affecting maternal health, nutrition, chronic disease care, dialysis, immunization and disease surveillance.

WHO scales up its emergency health response

WHO is working with the Ministry of Public Health and Population and Health Cluster partners to keep life-saving health services functioning and strengthen the capacity of hospitals and emergency teams to respond to increasing casualties, displacement and other health needs.

WHO’s preparedness and response are organized around three contingency scenarios. All triggers for Scenario 2 have now been reached, and WHO, the Ministry of Public Health and Population and Health Cluster partners are operating under Scenario 2, covering 11 governorates.

Under this response, WHO is working to expand trauma and surgical capacity, strengthen ambulance and emergency referral services, deploy additional emergency teams, maintain a 60-day buffer of critical health supplies and establish alternative supply and referral corridors where existing routes are disrupted.

WHO is also preparing for the possibility of further deterioration. This includes pre-positioning emergency supplies, preparing Mukalla as an alternative logistics and response hub, strengthening supply routes through Hadramout and Oman, and planning for potential large-scale displacement and associated health needs.

These contingency measures are increasingly important as access and referral routes continue to deteriorate. Partner access from Aden to the West Coast has stopped, access to At-Turbah and Taiz city is difficult, and casualties from the increasingly active Lahj front are being referred along the Lahj–Aden axis to receiving hospitals in Aden.

“Yemen’s health system is already carrying an enormous burden, and the latest escalation is placing even greater pressure on hospitals, health workers and life-saving services. Our priority is to ensure that people affected by the escalation can continue to access essential and emergency health care. This requires protecting access to health services, keeping critical supplies moving and strengthening hospitals and referral systems before needs increase further,” said Dr Syed Jaffar Hussain, WHO Representative to Yemen.

Building on sustained emergency operations

WHO’s current scale-up builds on emergency health operations sustained across all 22 governorates over the past year, supporting trauma care, outbreak response, essential health services, medical supply chains and emergency preparedness through logistics hubs in Aden and Sana’a.

WHO has distributed more than 2,270 metric tonnes of medical supplies to major hospitals nationwide, including intravenous fluids, trauma and surgical kits, blood bags and laboratory supplies, while also providing fuel support to 32 health facilities to maintain critical services.

WHO-supported interventions have enabled around 5,185 life-saving surgeries and care for more than 33,000 patients. WHO has also supported 12 surgical teams across nine governorates and 27 diarrhoea treatment centres.

Emergency referral and response capacity has been strengthened through seven ambulances and support for 804 critical patient referrals, while more than 1,200 health workers have received training to strengthen frontline emergency care and preparedness. These interventions are particularly important in a health system where shortages of health workers, equipment and medical supplies continue to constrain service delivery, and where many operating health facilities depend on partner support.

As part of the current escalation response, WHO has completed its third emergency supply dispatch to four hospitals identified in coordination with the Ministry of Public Health and Population. Surgical supplies, essential commodities and antibiotics were delivered to Al-Gamhoriah Teaching Hospital and 22 May Hospital in Aden on 13 September, Kara Hospital in Marib on 16 September and Marib General Hospital Authority on 17 September. WHO is also procuring 17,000 adult and 3,000 paediatric blood bags for the National Blood Transfusion Centre and referral hospitals.

Delivering under access and supply constraints

Despite the scale-up, access remains one of the most significant constraints to the health response.

Access constraints are increasingly affecting referral and supply routes. Partner access from Aden to the West Coast has stopped, while access to At-Turbah and Taiz city is difficult. The main paved Taiz–Aden route has also been repeatedly affected, increasing pressure on alternative referral and supply corridors.

Health care has also been directly affected. Nine health facilities or health assets have been damaged, put out of service, closed or directly attacked in Taiz, Lahj and Al-Hodeidah. On 18 September, ambulances were targeted at the Kahbub front in Lahj, killing an ambulance driver and an emergency medical responder. WHO is verifying reported damage to health facilities through its global Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care.

Critical medical supplies are also under pressure. Following three emergency dispatches, WHO’s Aden warehouse is…