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Mon, Nov 25, 2024 | Jumada al-Awwal 24, 1446 | DXB
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'Contaminated' medicine kills at least 10 children in Yemen
Bacteria detected in injections administered to the patients
AFP file photo used for illustrative purpose
Contaminated medication smuggled into war-torn Yemen has killed at least 10 children being treated for leukaemia in the rebel-held capital Sanaa, local authorities said Friday.
"Ten children suffering from leukaemia have died" at the Kuwait Hospital, the Houthi rebels' health ministry said, adding they were among a group of 19 patients aged between three and 15.
It said "bacterial contamination" had been detected in the injections administered to the children, adding that the medication had been smuggled into the country.
Another child was in "highly critical condition", it said.
The medication had passed its expiry date, a medical source in Sanaa told AFP, asking not to be identified for security reasons.
The source warned that the casualty toll could rise.
The mother of one of the children who died, contacted by AFP on the telephone, said her eight-year-old boy's injection was the first treatment he had received.
"He had various pains, so a doctor prescribed sedatives, but his pain only got worse and he lost consciousness," she said, also declining to be named.
"Then he died. I don't know how I'll live without him."
She added that she had heard doctors say the medicine was contaminated.
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