Medics at Sanaa’s Largest Hospital Protest against Houthi Oppression

A view of the old quarter of Sanaa, Yemen August 6, 2018. (Reuters)
A view of the old quarter of Sanaa, Yemen August 6, 2018. (Reuters)
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Medics at Sanaa’s Largest Hospital Protest against Houthi Oppression

A view of the old quarter of Sanaa, Yemen August 6, 2018. (Reuters)
A view of the old quarter of Sanaa, Yemen August 6, 2018. (Reuters)

Dozens of medics and nurses working at the Al-Thawra Modern General Hospital in the Houthi-held Yemeni capital, Sanaa, have protested against the Iran-backed militias’ oppression, local sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Late last week, Al-Thawra staffers staged a demonstration to voice their discontent with the Houthi violation of their rights.

The rallied across local neighborhoods near the hospital, demanding that they receive their share of revenues the Houthis are collecting from their services, the sources revealed.

They also expressed their total rejection of all practices instilled by Ali Hajaf, who was appointed by the Houthis as Al-Thawra’s chief of medicine.

For years, the Houthis have channeled the hospital staffer’s income to their war effort and have gone beyond the pale in their harassment of Sanaa medics and their families.

Despite the militias’ threats to dismiss, arrest and imprison them, many protesters vowed they would continue to stage marches until their financial dues are met, and systematic injustice and oppression are ended.

Moreover, an official at the hospital’s staff syndicate urged all employees, union leaders and health sector employees to join their fellow protesters to press for rights.

Al-Thawra is one of the largest public hospitals in Yemen, and it enjoys substantial financial support.

However, since the Houthi coup, it has been the victim of multiple lootings ordered by senior officials in the militias.

Since early 2021, the Houthis have stepped up their targeting of hundreds of doctors and workers at Al-Thawra and other government hospitals in the areas they control.

Not only did the Houthis loot Al-Thawra’s finances, but they have also limited the health center’s services to exclusively treat wounded and sick combatants or those who would pay more than the average medical fee.



Gaza Hunger Crisis Could Return If Israeli Aid Restrictions Continue, Head of UN Relief Agency Says

UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini adjusts his glasses during a press conference on the situation in the Palestinian Gaza strip, at the United Nations offices in Geneva on March 10, 2025. (AFP)
UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini adjusts his glasses during a press conference on the situation in the Palestinian Gaza strip, at the United Nations offices in Geneva on March 10, 2025. (AFP)
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Gaza Hunger Crisis Could Return If Israeli Aid Restrictions Continue, Head of UN Relief Agency Says

UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini adjusts his glasses during a press conference on the situation in the Palestinian Gaza strip, at the United Nations offices in Geneva on March 10, 2025. (AFP)
UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini adjusts his glasses during a press conference on the situation in the Palestinian Gaza strip, at the United Nations offices in Geneva on March 10, 2025. (AFP)

There is a risk that Gaza experiences another hunger crisis if Israel continues to block aid, the head of the UN Palestinian relief agency (UNRWA) in Gaza said on Monday, warning the situation is quickly deteriorating.

Israel cut aid flows of food, medicine and fuel imports earlier this month, a move it said was designed to pressure Hamas in ceasefire talks. On Sunday, it announced an electricity cut, which aid groups say would deprive Gazans of clean water.

"I think the more we go ahead (with aid blockages), the more we will see the impact increasing on the population. And obviously, the risk ... is that we go back to situation we experienced months ago about deepening hunger in the Gaza Strip," said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.

"Whatever the intent is, it's clearly a weaponization of humanitarian aid into Gaza," he told reporters. "We have seen the situation is deteriorating very, very quickly."

In the same press briefing in Geneva, he described the agency's financial situation as "critical and precarious".

Israel, which has long alleged that UNRWA has ties to Hamas, barred the agency from its territory in January.

Israel's ambassador to the UN in Geneva said earlier on Monday that it is actively encouraging UN agencies and others to take over UNRWA's work in Gaza.

Lazzarini said the agency was subject to a disinformation campaign and that it has not seen any other groups replacing it in Gaza so far.