DUBAI: Yemen’s Information Minister Muammar Al-Iryani said Houthi militia are looting and extorting the private healthcare sector, state news agency Saba News reported.
The complaints from medical staff living in areas under Houthi control reveal additional taxes on owners of hospitals, private clinics and medical workers in the private sector, Al-Iryani said.
“Houthi militia, after destroying public health sector… went to impose additional taxes on private hospitals and clinics, drug manufacturers and stores on basis of military effort,” he added.
The militants have left the public without a defense against diseases but equipped the hospitals where their leaders and personnel stay with the highest technologies, Al-Iryani said.
Last week, the Iran-backed Houthis were accused of covering up the extent of the outbreak of COVID-19 in the territory under its control and of hampering with aid operations.
Yemeni citizens who have the coronavirus virus, or are suspected of having it, are staying at home out of fear they will be killed in hospital by “lethal injections” administered by Houthis, Al-Iryani said.
Houthis extort private healthcare in Yemen: Information Minister
https://arab.news/gg7mw
Houthis extort private healthcare in Yemen: Information Minister
- Houthis have added taxes on private healthcare sector
- Yemeni citizens who have the coronavirus virus are staying at home out of fear they will be killed in hospital by “lethal injections” administered by Houthis
Mass grave found in Libya containing bodies of 21 migrants
- A Libyan national has been arrested on suspicion of killing the migrants and holding others captive
- Photos and video circulated by local media outlets showed bodies piled together
TRIPOLI: Libyan authorities have uncovered a mass grave containing the bodies of 21 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, local media reported Thursday.
News outlets cited government sources as saying a Libyan national has been arrested on suspicion of killing the migrants and holding others captive on a farm in the northeastern town of Ajdabiya.
Libya is a key transit country for thousands of migrants attempting to reach Europe each year, with deaths among migrants frequently reported.
The Internal Security Agency for Libya’s east said it had “discovered a mass grave containing the bodies of 21 individuals of various African nationalities,” according to television channel Al-Masar.
The channel, which is aligned with eastern Libya’s army strongman Khalifa Haftar, said the suspect was detained during a raid on the farm.
Libya remains split between an administration in the east backed by Haftar and a government in the west recognized by the United Nations.
Independent news channel Al Wasat reported that the man had held migrants captive on the farm, some of whom were rescued and hospitalized after the raid.
Photos and video circulated by local media outlets showed bodies piled together and more than a dozen body bags laid out on the ground.
Libya has struggled to recover from chaos that erupted after a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 overthrew longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi.
Smugglers and human traffickers have taken advantage of the instability, with the country facing criticism over conditions for migrants and rights groups levelling accusations of extortion and slavery.
