Yemeni children suffering from Thalassemia, a genetic blood disorder, receive treatment at the Yemen Society for Thalassemia and Genetic Blood Disorders in the capital, Sanaa, on March 21, 2022. (MOHAMMED HUWAIS / AFP)
SANAA – Ten children with leukemia died after receiving smuggled medicines in a public hospital in Yemen's capital Sanaa, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported on Friday citing a statement by the Houthi-controlled health authorities.
Meanwhile, nine other children are in critical condition after receiving the same smuggled medicines, according to the statement released on Thursday night.
An investigation is underway.
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Smuggled medicines are common for hospitals across Yemen, which have been suffering from a shortage of drugs, equipment and funds for years.
More than half of Yemen's medical facilities have been paralyzed since a civil war broke out.
The Houthi rebels captured large swaths of northern Yemen in 2014 and drove the Saudi-backed Yemeni government out of Sanaa, plunging the Arab country into a civil war that continues to this day.
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The war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced 4 million, and pushed the country to the brink of starvation.