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Sana’a Reels From Cholera Cases

Jumhouri Hospital in Sana’a received more than 200 patients with cholera in the last few days.
Jumhouri Hospital in Sana’a received more than 200 patients with cholera in the last few days.

More than 200 cholera cases have been reported in Yemen’s capital Sana’a, as contaminated water and poor sanitation lead to a sharp rise in the transmission of the deadly disease.

Cholera is one of several risks to civilians, but a rapid advance of the disease would add a new dimension to an unfolding humanitarian disaster.

“In the last few days, we’ve received more than 200 patients with cholera,” a nurse at the Jumhouri Hospital in Sana’a told Aljazeera on Saturday. “Two patients died because they were in bad condition and they came here too late.”

Khabar Agency, a local news website, reported 10 deaths across the country on Saturday, citing information provided by the Ministry of Public Health.

Abdul Hakim Kahlani, the official spokesman of the ministry, told the website that there were three confirmed deaths in Sana’a, three in Ibb Province and four in Hodeidah Province.

The streets of Sana’a and its suburbs have been littered with piles of garbage and families living in close proximity have been some of the hardest hit.

Street cleaners have repeatedly called on the government to increase wages and a strike over pay has lasted seven months.

Yemen has been battling a cholera outbreak since mid-October 2016. Out of 23,506 suspected cases, there have been 108 associated deaths. Cholera is transmitted through contaminated drinking water.

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