Live
play
  • News
    • Middle East
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • US & Canada
    • Latin America
    • Europe
    • Asia Pacific
  • Coronavirus
  • Features
  • Economy
  • Opinion
  • Video
  • More
    • Investigations
    • Interactives
    • In Pictures
    • Climate
    • Science & Technology
    • Sports
    • Podcasts

In Pictures

Gallery

In Pictures: Malnutrition, cholera add to Yemen woes

War-ravaged Yemenis, mainly children, suffer from malnutrition as humanitarian groups warn of unsafe drinking water.

Boys drawing water from a well in Aslam in the Abs region. Humanitarian groups stress that water from the wells is not fit for human consumption as it could cause cholera. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Boys drawing water from a well in Aslam in the Abs region. Humanitarian groups stress that water from the wells is not fit for human consumption as it could cause cholera. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
By 
Alessio Romenzi and 
Francesca Mannocchi
3 Oct 2019
facebooktwitterwhatsapp

Hajjah province, Yemen – The five-year civil war in Yemen has killed more than 70,000 people and pushed millions to the brink of famine in what the United Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Last month, a local non-government organisation said even the water supply in Yemen had been “weaponised”, referring to the country’s unclean water, which breeds cholera.

There are 18 million Yemenis with no access to drinking water.

In the past years, the shortage of drinking water triggered a cholera outbreak that impacted 1.2 million people, making the epidemic the largest in history.

According to the Yemen Data Project, a Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthi rebels has carried out 20,000 air attacks, one-third of which were on non-military sites, including hospitals and schools. 

The damages, combined with an air, naval and maritime blockade imposed on the northern areas, have paralysed people’s access to basic goods.

At malnutrition prevention centres across the country, dozens of people queue every day for hours for a medical examination and a pack of soy.

Ahmed Mohammed Al Bahiali sits in the corridor of the distribution centre with his two-year-old daughter in his arms. The child is crying and he tries to calm her by giving her small sips of water.

“Today, my daughter is constantly vomiting. I brought her here hoping someone would see her. I don’t know if it is cholera or an infection,” he said.

“We are very poor. Before the war, I worked in Saudi Arabia. Today, I have no job, house nor the possibility of moving. Our situation is disastrous, we have only God’s help,” said the father of 11 children.

Ahmed said they do not have nutritious food to give the children. “They eat just flour every day. Sometimes they don’t get vegetables or fruit or milk for weeks.” 

The thing that makes him suffer the most, he said, is feeling like a beggar. “The war took away my dignity.”

A mother with her children at Saada hospital. The city, a Houthi rebel stronghold, has been badly hit by Saudi-led coalition air attacks. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A mother with her children at Saada hospital. The city, a Houthi rebel stronghold, has been badly hit by Saudi-led coalition air attacks. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Advertisement
The collapsing water and sanitation systems have cut off 14.5 million people from regular access to clean water and sanitation, increasing the probability of diseases spreading. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
The collapsing water and sanitation systems have cut off 14.5 million people from regular access to clean water and sanitation, increasing the probability of diseases spreading. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
UN food distribution in Hajja area. Two-thirds of Yemen's districts face famine. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
UN food distribution in Hajja area. Two-thirds of Yemen's districts face famine. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Ahmed Mohammed Al Bahiali waits for his daughter to be seen by a doctor in a school-turned-heath centre in the Beni Qais district. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Ahmed Mohammed Al Bahiali waits for his daughter to be seen by a doctor in a school-turned-heath centre in the Beni Qais district. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
The maternity ward in Abs hospital. It is common for women who have their babies hospitalised to carry the other siblings with them because there is nobody else at home to take care of them. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
The maternity ward in Abs hospital. It is common for women who have their babies hospitalised to carry the other siblings with them because there is nobody else at home to take care of them. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A premature baby in Abs hospital. The UN warned last month that more than half of its reproductive health facilities in Yemen could close, putting the lives of women and children at risk. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A premature baby in Abs hospital. The UN warned last month that more than half of its reproductive health facilities in Yemen could close, putting the lives of women and children at risk. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Advertisement
Fathers wait with their children for prescriptions at the Aslam village clinic, 20km from Abs in northwestern Yemen. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Fathers wait with their children for prescriptions at the Aslam village clinic, 20km from Abs in northwestern Yemen. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A Yemeni woman receiving treatment in a school-turned-health centre in Abs. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A Yemeni woman receiving treatment in a school-turned-health centre in Abs. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Nurse Mekkiyah Al-Aslami examines Nada, a malnourished child in Abs. She is nine months old and weighs just 2.8kg, a third of what she should weigh at her age. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
Nurse Mekkiyah Al-Aslami examines Nada, a malnourished child in Abs. She is nine months old and weighs just 2.8kg, a third of what she should weigh at her age. [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A water well in Abs province. Humanitarian organisations stress that water from the wells must not be drunk to prevent cholera [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]
A water well in Abs province. Humanitarian organisations stress that water from the wells must not be drunk to prevent cholera [Alessio Romenzi/Al Jazeera]

More from Gallery

In Pictures: Panic grips Bangui residents after rebel attack

During a lull in the fighting, people come to collect information and assess the situation. Some fled towards the city centre, but many stayed hidden in their homes during the fighting. [Adrienne Suprenant/Al Jazeera]

In Pictures: Long queues, army patrols as Ugandans cast ballots

Ugandans are voting in a presidential election tainted by widespread violence that some fear could escalate as security forces try to stop supporters of leading opposition challenger Bobi Wine from monitoring polling stations. [Jerome Delay/AP Photo]

In Pictures: National Guard troops arrive before US inauguration

Members of the National Guard gather at the US Capitol as the House of Representatives prepares to begin the voting process on a resolution demanding US Vice President Pence and the cabinet remove President Trump from office, in Washington. [Erin Scott/Reuters]

In Pictures: Orphaned rhinos find refuge in S Africa sanctuary

Rhino calves at the Rhino Orphanage in an undisclosed location in Limpopo province, South Africa. [Michele Spatari/AFP]
Most Read

After Capitol attack, Trump’s approval rating slides in US polls

President Donald Trump's approval rating falls to a new low after his supporters stormed the Capitol [Gerald Herbert/AP Photo]

‘Unprecedented exodus’: Why are migrant workers leaving the UK?

The study's authors said the exodus was primarily being driven by the economic fallout unleashed by the COVID-19 crisis [File: Tolga Akmen/ AFP] (AFP)

Uganda’s Wine claims poll win despite lead for Museveni

Bobi Wine, the 38-year-old former musician-turned politician has emerged as the main challenger to 76-year-old Museveni, who has been in power since 1986 [Abubaker Lubowa/Reuters]

Trump administration carries out 13th, final federal execution

Convicted murderer Dustin Higgs, 48, was pronounced dead at 1:23am local time on Saturday [File: Michael Conroy/AP]
  • About
    • About Us
    • Code of Ethics
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Cookie Preferences
    • Community Guidelines
    • Work for us
    • HR Quality
  • Connect
    • Contact Us
    • Apps
    • Newsletters
    • Channel Finder
    • TV Schedule
    • Podcasts
    • Submit a Tip
  • Our Channels
    • Al Jazeera Arabic
    • Al Jazeera English
    • Al Jazeera Mubasher
    • Al Jazeera Documentary
    • Al Jazeera Balkans
    • AJ+
  • Our Network
    • Al Jazeera Centre for Studies
    • Al Jazeera Media Institute
    • Learn Arabic
    • Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights
    • Al Jazeera Forum
    • Al Jazeera Hotel Partners
Follow Al Jazeera English:rssinstagramyoutubetwitterfacebook
logo
© 2021 Al Jazeera Media Network