Zika virus disease
30 January 2016 – Outbreaks of Zika virus disease are currently ongoing in 22 countries in the Americas and in 1 country in Africa. No cases of the disease have so far been reported from any country in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region. However, the disease is spread by a species of mosquito that exists in the majority of countries of the...
Libya conflict lingers leaving nearly 2 million in need of health care
Speaking at a special briefing on Libya in Geneva, His Excellency Dr Reida Oakely, Libya’s Minister of Health, and Dr Syed Jaffar Hussain, WHO Representative for Libya, appealed to the international community to step up efforts to help save nearly 2 million people. WHO and health partners require a total of US$50 million in 2016 to meet critical health...
Reducing preventable cancer deaths in the Region
31 January 2016 – 400 000 people, young and old, die every year in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region due to cancer. On World Cancer Day, 4 February, under the slogan “We Can. I Can.”, WHO is calling on governments to provide and improve access to quality cancer care and on communities and individuals to quit smoking, eat healthy food and keep...
World Health Organization to open new regional centre for emergencies and polio
Photo credit: WHO/I.Hamam17 January 2016 – As part of efforts to strengthen its response to emergencies in the Region and to continue the fight against polio, the World Health Organization (WHO) has established a regional centre for health emergencies and polio eradication in Amman, Jordan. The centre will be inaugurated Sunday 17 January 2016 in an...
WHO Regional Director's statement on urgent and immediate access into Taiz City for delivery of health supplies
14 January 2016 – Despite repeated calls for immediate access to meet urgent health needs throughout Yemen, the World Health Organization continues to be unable to deliver life-saving medicines and medical supplies in many parts of the country. Access to meet the health needs of the population of Taiz city is of particular concern. For the last 4...
UNICEF and WHO appeal for the lifting of siege on communities in Syria
Joint statement Dr Ala Alwan WHO Regional Director and Dr Peter Salama, UNICEF Regional Director Amman/Cairo, 14 January 2016 – This week’s delivery of urgently needed humanitarian supplies1 to the besieged communities of Madaya, Foua’a and Kafraya is a welcome step for a population in desperate need. During the mission to Madaya, our teams met many...
WHO Regional Director and Minister of Health of Yemen discuss Yemen's critical health needs
13 January 2016, Cairo, Egypt – Yemen’s Minister of Public Health and Population Dr Nasir Baoum and WHO’s Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Ala Alwan met today to discuss the humanitarian and health situation in Yemen. “The situation in Yemen is critical. Hospitals, laboratories, blood banks and other health facilities are...
WHO calls for immediate access to Taiz City to deliver life-saving health supplies
7 January 2016, Sana’a, Yemen – The World Health Organization is concerned about the deteriorating health situation in Taiz, where more than 250 000 people have been living in a state of virtual siege since November 2015. All of city's 6 hospitals have been forced to partially close some services, and are overwhelmed with injured patients....
WHO delivers medical aid for 1.2 million people in Taiz, Yemen, during ceasefire
24 December 2015, Sana’a, Yemen -- The World Health Organization (WHO) has delivered more than 100 tonnes of medicines and medical supplies for more than one million beneficiaries in 8 districts of Taiz governorate, where more than 3 million people, including 392,000 internally displaced persons, are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. The health...
WHO: Urgent support needed to provide health services for 15 million people in Yemen
Geneva, 15 December 2015 – The World Health Organization and health partners are appealing for US$ 31 million to ensure the continuity of health services for nearly 15 million people in Yemen affected by the ongoing conflict. Funding is urgently needed as the Yemeni health system has collapsed, leaving millions of vulnerable people without the...