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Yemen's Coronavirus 25% Fatality Rate, the Highest in the World, Including 27 Professors in Aden University

June 19, 2020 

Saudi Warplanes Destroy A Communication Station In Sanaa, June 17, 2020	Coronavirus victims' graveyard in Yemen

 

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The following news stories are from the Yemeni independent website Al-Masdar ( http://www.almasdaronline.com/category/42  ):

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The president of the university's faculty union listed the deaths in a mass obituary without specifying how they died

Aden University mourns 27 professors' deaths since May amid disease outbreaks

 11 JUNE, 2020 - 11:25 PM

Aden University’s Faculty Union said that 27 of its professors died in May and early June from fevers and other disease outbreaks that have affected the city, including COVID-19.

The disease outbreaks in the interim capital have claimed at least 1,800 lives, according to statistics from the Department of Civil Status and Civil Registry in Aden.

Without specifying the causes of death, Dr. Fadl Nasser Makwa, president of the union, said in a mass obituary that the professors had made significant marks in their academic work.

Dozens of politicians, doctors, academics and judges have died in Aden over the past two months. But without adequate testing supplies, health facilities and trained personnel to diagnose and treat ill patients amid panic during the COVID-19 outbreak, the causes of death in the vast majority of cases are unclear. 

The internationally recognized government’s Minister of Public Health and Population, Dr. Nasser Ba'oum, said this week that about 30 million Yemenis are at risk of six disease outbreaks: COVID-19, malaria, dengue fever, chikungunya, cholera and typhoid. 

The most recent professor to have died was Dr. Nasser Ali Nasser Al-Kazmi, former vice-president of the University of Aden for Student Affairs. He passed away early Wednesday.

The union statement included the following list of Aden University professors who have died since the beginning of May:

https://al-masdaronline.net/local/904 

Yemen’s coronavirus-related death rate is the highest in the world

UN: Yemen coronavirus fatality rate is nearly 25 percent 

10 JUNE, 2020 - 11:55 PM

In a report released this week, the UN highlighted Yemen’s “alarmingly high” COVID-19 fatality rate of nearly 25 percent. 

Yemen’s coronavirus-related death rate – which eclipses the world’s next-highest rates in Belgium (16.2 percent), France (15.3 percent) and Italy (14.5 percent) – is based on a comparatively small sample size, given the limited number of tests conducted in the war-torn country.

The rate was calculated based on data from Yemen’s National Emergency Committee for Coronavirus, which reported 486 COVID-19 cases, including 112 deaths, between April 10 and June 6. The fatality rates of European countries, by contrast, are based on hundreds of thousands of infections and tens of thousands of deaths.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNCHA) report said that more than 75 percent of the confirmed cases of coronavirus in Yemen are men between the ages of 45 and 59. This demographic is also most likely to die of the novel coronavirus. 

"Individuals with mild and moderate symptoms are often not seeking health care and only seek treatment when they are critically ill," the report said.

This may be explained by a fear of stigma, safety concerns and inability to access proper testing, the report added.

Meanwhile, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock warned Tuesday that Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Colombia, Nigeria, the Philippines and Ukraine will see the peak spread of the coronavirus in the next three to six months.

During a remote meeting of the UN Economic and Social Council, Lowcock added that "people in these countries will suffer not only from the direct effects of the virus, but also from disruptions to ongoing life-saving health services."

"In Yemen, people are dying alone in their homes or shelters ...We face many uncertainties We do not know when we will see a vaccine, or how effective containment measures will be."

Yemen’s five-year-long civil war has left only half of its health facilities fully functioning.

"UNICEF warns that the pandemic could cause an additional 6,000 children to die every day from preventable causes this year," Lowcock warned.

"We can expect to see cases of measles, cholera and other diseases rise as vaccinations are put on hold, medical supply chains are disrupted, and health systems buckle under the strain," he added.

Editing by Ahlam Mohsen and Casey Coombs

https://al-masdaronline.net/national/902 

STC gunmen ambush Shabwa security forces as tribal mediation unravels

 12 JUNE, 2020 - 10:22 PM

The ambush, which killed the brother of Shabwa’s special forces commander Brig. Gen. Abdrabbuh La’kab, came hours after tribal mediation with the head of the governorate’s security committee and Gov. Mohammed Bin Adyo defused a similar situation

Two security personnel in the internationally recognized government were killed Thursday evening in an ambush by gunmen belonging to the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Shabwa governorate’s Jardan district, a local security official told Almasdar Online.

The ambush, which killed the brother of Shabwa’s special forces commander Brig. Gen. Abdrabbuh La’kab, came hours after a tribal mediation agreement with the head of the governorate’s security committee and Gov. Mohammed Bin Adyo, on Thursday afternoon, to ease tensions following a similar incident. 

In the wake of the ambushes, security forces pushed reinforcements to Jardan to pursue what the source described as "saboteurs" loyal to Raed Dhabab, the head of the STC in the district. Jardan is located east of Shabwa’s capital Ataq, in the center of the governorate.

“The security services are working on the arrest of all the saboteurs and those responsible for today's events," the source said. 

In recent years, gunmen aligned with the Emirati-backed Transitional council (STC) have carried out ambush operations and attacks against the army and security forces in Shabwa. Since joining the war as part of the Saudi-led coalition, the UAE has operated a military base on the southern coast of Shabwa and has built up a militia of fighters known as the Shabwani Elite in the governorate.

Edited by Casey Coombs

https://al-masdaronline.net/local/910

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The following news stories are from the pro-Houthi website Yemen Extra (http://www.yemenextra.net/):

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YMU Condemns Saudi Blockade Of Fuel Tankers Going To Yemen

On Jun 17, 2020, YemenExtra

The Yemeni Media Union today, condemned the Saudi aggression’s detention of oil tankers, the tightening of the blockade, and the worsening of economic conditions.

The Union pointed out in a statement that these arbitrary measures taken by the aggression coalition led to double the suffering of the Yemeni people at a time the world is uniting in facing the Corona pandemic, providing health care requirements and saving the infected.

The Union stressed that the continued detention of tankers carrying oil derivatives and preventing them from unloading the oil in the ports of Hodeidah reveals aggressive brutality targeting civilians’ daily life needs, including institutions and service sectors and media sectors, saying it has negatively affected institutions and workers.

The statement called on the international community to pay attention to the humanitarian side in Yemen, and strive to lift the blockade, stop the aggression, and allow the flow of commercial shipments and humanitarian aid, especially medicines, including those related in particular in fighting off the Coronavirus.

Saudi Warplanes Destroy A Communication Station In Sanaa

On Jun 17, 2020, YemenExtra

The warplanes of the Saudi aggression destroyed today, a communications station western the capital, Sanaa.

An official stated that the military aircraft of the US-backed Saudi coalition of aggression launched an airstrike on the communications station in Al-Hawry hill in Hamadan District, which led to its total destruction.

The air force of the aggression coalition launched a raid yesterday midnight on the Al-Hafa area in the capital, Sanaa.

It is worth pointing out that just yesterday, Fighter jets of the aggression targeted the communication stations in Bani Ghaith and Tharwa regions, Amran Governorate, north of Sanaa, which led to the complete stoppage of communications and Internet services for the residents of several districts in the province.

The US-backed Saudi aggression increased its raids on various Yemeni regions, yesterday, Tuesday, where 77 raids were carried out, including 12 raids on Sanaa governorate, 28 raids on Majzr in Marib, 3 raids on Amran, 7 raids on Saada, 8 raids on Hajjah and 4 on Najran.

June/16: An Update Of The Saudi Crimes In Yemen

On Jun 17, 2020, YemenExtrahttps://www.yemenextra.net/2020/06/17/june-16-an-update-of-the-saudi-crimes-in-yemen/

The Saudi-led coalition of aggression continues to bombard various areas and governorates in Yemen, causing casualties and damage to public and private properties. In addition, the Saudi-UAE invaders and their mercenaries keep violating the Sweden ceasefire agreement of Hodeidah.

Here is an update of the Saudi crimes and violations on the 16th of June, 2020:

The Saudi aggression carried out 77 airstrikes in the past 24 hours, 62 of them were conducted in less than 12 hours. The Saudi-US airstrikes were distributed as follows: 12 raids on Sanaa governorate, 28 raids on Majzr in Marib, 3 raids on Amran, 7 raids on Saada, 8 raids on Hajjah and 4 on Najran.

In the coastal province of Hodeidah, the Liaison and Coordination Officers’ Operations Room monitored 65 violations by the aggression during the past 24 hours, which were the hovering of three warplanes in the airspace of al-Hodeidah city and 5 spy drones in the skies of Khamseen Street and Haiss, 14 breaches were carried out by artillery, with 47 shells and 43 breaches with different weapons.

In the capital, Sanaa, the warplanes of the Saudi aggression conducted 5 raids on the Nahdin area, and launched 3 strikes in the vicinity of Sanaa International Airport.

Moreover, two raids targeted the Jarban area in the Sanhan district, 3 raids on the district of Nehm, and launched a raid on the Beit Adran area in the Bani-Matar district located in Sana’a governorate.

In Marib, the warplanes of the aggression launched 15 raids on the al-Jafra line, the al-Jawf intersection and the Saleb in Majzar district.

In al-Jawf, the Saudi warplanes carried out 3 raids on the al-Mazareek area of Khub wa Al-Sha`f district.

In Hajjah, 4 raids were carried out in the al-Tina area in Medi and two raids on Mustbaa. Another airstrike was also launched on the Haradh district.

In Amran, the communications network in the Bani Surim district was targeted with a raid, which led to its complete destruction, while two raids targeted the communications network in Jabal Thoah, Dibeen district. In addition, 3 flash bombs were dropped on the Khamer district.

In Saada, north of Yemen, the Saudi coalition of aggression launched 5 raids on al-Zahir district, and two raids on the al-Ali area in the Razih district. Moreover, Saudi shelling with missiles and shells targeted populated villages in the town of Razih, a bordering area between Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

https://www.yemenextra.net/2020/06/17/june-16-an-update-of-the-saudi-crimes-in-yemen/

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