SANAA, Yemen — Yemen is trying to get ahead of the coronavirus crisis, but it faces a daunting task. Though it hadn't reported a single case of COVID-19 as of March 24, the country's medical infrastructure, debilitated from five years of civil war, and its fractured society leave it especially vulnerable to the pandemic.
Taha al-Mutawakel, health minister for the Houthis' National Salvation Government, held his first news conference on the virus March 21. He warned that 93% of the country’s medical equipment is out of service because of Yemen's civil war between the Iran-affiliated Houthis and the UN-recognized, Saudi-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.
