Severe Fuel and Medical Shortages Threaten Hospitals in Yemen’s Taiz Governorate

Hospitals across Yemen's Taiz governorate are facing severe disruptions to lifesaving medical services due to critical shortages of fuel, oxygen, medicines, and medical supplies, health authorities and humanitarian agencies reported on 22 October 2026. The shortages come amid restricted humanitarian access and growing displacement in the region.

According to reports from the area, 42 health facilities in Taiz city alone are experiencing acute deficits. These shortages directly impact critical care, with more than 1,110 kidney failure patients requiring daily dialysis, 192 patients in intensive care units, and 154 newborns reliant on incubators. Health authorities warn that emergency surgeries, maternal care, and neonatal services face further disruption if supplies are not quickly replenished.

Operating hospitals and running ambulance fleets in the area requires more than 156,000 litres of fuel per month. The lack of fuel has compromised oxygen production, emergency medical transport, and cold-chain systems required to preserve vaccines. The Ministry of Public Health and Population has described the situation as critical, while frequent communication outages have complicated efforts by the World Health Organization (WHO) and local officials to verify fuel reserves and assess the full extent of service disruptions.

The health emergency coincides with broader humanitarian challenges, including the displacement of over 256,000 people across Yemen between 1 August and 19 October, with Taiz serving as both a primary origin and destination. Fuel deficits have also impacted local water pumping and sanitation infrastructure, raising concerns over potential outbreaks of cholera and diarrhoeal diseases among displaced populations.

Aid organizations are attempting to secure alternative access routes to deliver aid amid ongoing transit restrictions. A national Health Cluster partner recently transported essential emergency medicines to Al-Thawra Hospital via an alternative route, and WHO has pre-positioned medical supplies, intravenous fluids, and hygiene commodities in Aden.

WHO and its partners are seeking to expand emergency medical operations, including supporting 10 diarrhoea treatment centres across five governorates and deploying mobile medical teams in Taiz. The organization has called for immediate, unhindered humanitarian access and emergency funding to maintain healthcare operations in the governorate.

Source