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UN agency says 13,000 pregnant women in Taiz lack healthcare

Published

The UN Population Fund said on Tuesday that blockades and fighting have cut essential healthcare for more than 13,000 pregnant women around Taiz, Yemen. The agency links the crisis to more miscarriages and says the city has been largely isolated for a month.

The agency said maternal deaths are rising. Clashes between the Saudi-backed government and the Houthi movement have isolated the city, and fighting stops supplies from entering and civilians from leaving. About 147,000 women and girls of childbearing age are cut off from essential healthcare services.

UNFPA Yemen representative Francesco Galtieri said insecurity, shelling and high fuel prices stop many women and medical staff from reaching the main maternal care hospital. He warned that the Yemeni-Swedish Motherhood and Childhood Hospital could shut if officials do not ease access restrictions within days. Daily deliveries there have fallen to around 5 from 10 before the fighting.

Only 5 of 27 emergency maternal and neonatal health facilities in and around Taiz still work, and only in part. The agency expects about 1,500 obstetric emergencies among 6,400 displaced pregnant women. Galtieri also said pregnant women are living on little more than tea, bread or rice.

The latest fighting has displaced 300,000 people across Yemen. The UN World Food Programme said more than 800,000 people in Taiz and nearby areas have had no food assistance since early October.

Key facts

Who
Francesco Galtieri (UNFPA Yemen representative); United Nations Population Fund (UN agency reporting the figures); UN World Food Programme (source of food assistance figure); Houthi movement (party in clashes with the Saudi-backed government)
What
UNFPA said on Tuesday that blockades and fighting around Taiz have cut off essential healthcare for more than 13,000 pregnant women and are leading to more miscarriages, with maternal deaths rising. The city has been largely isolated for a month amid clashes between the Saudi-backed government and the Houthi movement.
When
3 November 2026
Where
Taiz, Yemen, Aden
Status
Reported

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