Cholera cases rise in Yemen as fragile healthcare system comes under growing pressure

Concerns are growing over a renewed cholera outbreak in Yemen, after years of conflict has left the country's healthcare system struggling to cope.

Thousands of suspected cases have already been reported this year, with medical teams warning that worsening conditions could fuel the spread of the disease.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly 5,000 suspected cases of cholera and acute watery diarrhoea have been recorded since the start of 2026, along with seven deaths.

Most infections have been reported since late April in areas controlled by Yemen's internationally recognised government, including Taiz province.

Hospitals stretched by rising admissions

At Al Jumhouri Hospital in Taiz, doctors and nurses are working around the clock as growing numbers of patients arrive suffering from severe dehydration caused by the waterborne disease.

Among them is 60-year-old Fatima Qaed, who described the frightening experience of becoming seriously ill.

"First came severe diarrhoea. I endured the pain for two days, but on the third day, I started vomiting severely. The diarrhoea and vomiting just wouldn't stop," she said.

"It is a relentless, severe illness. I couldn't even sleep. I felt like I was dying. I already have high blood pressure and diabetes, so I was terrified my condition would worsen. When they told me I had cholera, I was extremely terrified."

War and aid shortages blamed

Health officials say the outbreak is being driven by the devastating impact of more than a decade of war, alongside shrinking international aid and the collapse of basic services.

"Regarding the current epidemic situation in Yemen, multiple diseases and outbreaks are spreading across the country, and cholera is one of them," said Tayseer Al-Samaei, spokesperson for the Taiz Health Office.

"Cholera is a disease fuelled by war and the shortage of international financial aid in recent years."

The WHO says Yemen is now among the countries hardest hit by cholera, ranking seventh worldwide for suspected cases and second in its Eastern Mediterranean Region after Afghanistan.

Basic services under strain

The United Nations health agency has linked the outbreak to failing water and sanitation systems, severe shortages of medical staff and supplies, and a healthcare network that has been pushed to the brink by years of conflict.

With access to clean drinking water still limited in many communities, health workers warn that preventing the spread of cholera remains an enormous challenge for families already living through one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

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• Central African Republic reports cholera outbreak with 24 deaths

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