Doctors Without Borders (MSF), a humanitarian medical care group, has reported a significant and concerning increase in measles cases in war-ravaged Yemen this year.
According to a press release issued on Thursday, MSF treated nearly 4,000 patients for measles in Yemen during the first half of 2023, nearly three times the number treated in the previous year.
The organization attributes the surge in measles cases to low immunization rates and escalating malnutrition, both worsened by the nine years of ongoing conflict in the country. Measles primarily affects children under the age of five.
Difficulties in accessing healthcare facilities and the delayed seeking of treatment due to these challenges have led to complications in more than half of the cases treated at MSF facilities, the organization reported.
Caroline Ducarme, MSF Head of Mission in Yemen, emphasized the gravity of the situation, stating, “The dramatic increase we’ve seen this year cannot be ignored, it is increasing the strain on medical facilities, which are already overloaded. These are not just numbers we’re talking about – they’re children’s lives.”
