At least ten children of leukemia patients died in a hospital in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, after being injected with “contaminated” and “smuggled” medicine from abroad, according to local authorities and a medical source.
The Ministry of Health in the “Houthis” government stated, yesterday, Thursday, that 19 children in Kuwait Hospital suffering from leukemia, and their ages range between 3 and 15 years, who experienced complications after receiving a drug that was smuggled to a private pharmacy, according to Agence France-Presse.
The ministry stated that ten of these children died, while one child is still in a very critical condition, and eight children suffer from mild complications.
The ministry indicated that its investigations led to the discovery of bacterial contamination in the containers of the used medicine, which was smuggled from abroad, according to the statement.
A medical source revealed that the medicine was expired, and the children died “immediately after the injection”, and it is likely that the number of deaths is higher than what the authorities announced, given that there are 50 children in the same unit.
Yemen is witnessing a significant shortage of medicines and medical equipment, as a result of the ongoing war since 2014 between the Saudi-led coalition that supports the internationally recognized government, and the “Houthis” who control Sanaa and other areas.
The war in Yemen has killed more than 377,000 people directly or indirectly, according to a report issued by the United Nations at the end of last year.
The conflict led to the collapse of the Yemeni health sector, as the recognized government imports medicines from abroad, but the process of transferring them to Houthi-controlled areas requires a long time, pending the approval of both parties.
As for medicines that are imported directly to the “Houthis” areas, they arrive via ships that are subject to inspection at sea by the Saudi-led military coalition, and their prices are often very high.
The United Nations has verified the killing and injury of more than ten thousand children since the beginning of the Yemeni conflict, according to a report by the United Nations Children’s Fund “UNICEF”.
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