Red Cross says cholera epidemic hits 1 million in Yemen

SANAA, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- Suspected cholera cases in Yemen have reached one million, highlighting the suffering of the country caught up in a civil war for nearly three years, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Thursday.

More than 80 percent of the population lack food, fuel, clean water and access to healthcare, ICRC said on its official Twitter page.

The World Health Organization has reported 2,219 deaths from the cholera outbreak since it spread across the country in April, third of whom were children.

The war-torn Arab country has also been suffering from a severe diphtheria outbreak since October.

On Dec. 11, the United Nations aid agencies reported 32 deaths from diphtheria, warning the disease is spreading.

The suspected cases of diphtheria have reached up to 244, mostly children, according to the aid agencies.

Vaccines needed to treat diphtheria will run out, local authorities have warned.

Ships and planes carrying humanitarian supplies have been unable to reach Yemen since the Saudi-led coalition imposed a blockade in early November.

The Saudi-led military coalition, which has been fighting the Houthi rebels since March 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, has blocked land, sea and air access to Yemen after Saudi Arabia intercepted a missile launched by the Houthis toward the Saudi capital of Riyadh on Nov. 4.

The coalition has eased the siege late last month, reopening some ports in south of the country. But UN aid agencies said the move was not enough, while demanding for a complete reopening of all Yemeni ports, including Hodeidah port, the only port to northern Yemen, which is under Houthi control.

On Tuesday, the Yemeni Houthi rebels fired another ballistic missile towards Riyadh's royal palace of Yamamah, but the Saudi-led coalition said they intercepted the missile without casualties.

The day later, Saudi Arabia said it would allow humanitarian aid deliveries into Houthi-controlled Red Sea port of Hodeidah for a month, according to Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television. Enditem