**The country announces its first case of coronavirus in a province under the control of the internationally recognized government.** Yemen has reported this Friday its first case of Covid-19 in Hadramaut province, under the control of the internationally recognized government. The news coincides with the expected reduction in half of aid distributed by the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) in areas under the control of the Huthi rebels starting this month. This measure is due both to lack of funds and to that group's obstacles to distribution. The Huthi have yet to respond to the unilateral truce decreed by the Arab coalition supporting the government. The contagion has been announced by the National Emergency Committee. "The patient is stable, receiving medical attention and those responsible concerned have taken the appropriate measures," he said on his Twitter account. Shortly afterwards, the governor of Hadramaut, General Faraj Salemin al Bahssani, issued an urgent circular limiting circulation in the province and decreeing the closure of markets and mosques. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EVOjq_xUYAMFDbU?format=jpg&name=900x900 The victim is a Yemeni citizen who worked in the port of the small town of Shehr, 60 kilometers east of Mukalla, the provincial capital. Hence, the governor has opted for the total confinement of the eastern regions from eight in the morning today and from six in the rest. There was already an attempt to limit population movements a week ago, but it did not work. "I hope this case serves as a warning to people. We are not prepared. No one has changed their routines. You go out on the street and people continue to gather in cafes, greeting each other with a handshake, ”laments Salah al Quaiti, vice president of the charity Friends of Hadramaut, by phone from Mukalla. "It is the first time in our lives that we see a curfew," he explains. Videos distributed via social media show a fire truck on the streets of Shehr announcing the obligation to stay home over a loudspeaker. The port town will be closed for a week to carry out a thorough cleaning. Workers have also been ordered to isolate themselves in their homes for two weeks. "They are trying to establish with whom the person was in contact," says Salah. The fear of the authorities, and of humanitarian agencies, is that the coronavirus will spread among a population that lacks the means to cope. Social distancing is a chimera when in most houses several generations of large families live and drinking water only reaches the homes of the most fortunate. "More personal protective equipment and test kits are urgently needed for both the national health system and humanitarian organizations," Caroline Seguin, operations director for Medecins Sans Frontieres in Yemen, said in a statement. "The different Yemeni authorities also have to allow the entry of medical and support personnel from foreign organizations," he added in apparent reference to the restrictions imposed by the Huthi. NGOs and UN agencies have been trying to alleviate the needs of the poorest Arab countries, further aggravated by five years of war . However, just when he needs it most, some donors have cut their contributions out of concern that aid was being hampered by the Huthi. These allegations, which came to light in the middle of last year when WFP partially suspended its activities, will translate into that as of mid-April, families will only receive aid one month out of two instead of monthly as until now. . “The environment for humanitarian operations in areas of Yemen under the control of de facto authorities is becoming increasingly complicated and problematic. Consequently, the PAM operation in Yemen is now facing a critical shortage of funds and has no choice but to cut its attendance in half to avoid its total suspension in the future, ”a spokesperson for that UN agency explains to EL PAÍS. . The source has also reiterated the call for those responsible to allow the necessary confidence measures for donations to resume. WFP feeds 12 million Yemenis, 40% of the population, and 80% of its beneficiaries are in rebel-controlled areas. The Huthi, aligned with Iran, ousted the internationally recognized government of Abdrabbo Mansur Hadi and pushed its members into exile in 2014. Saudi Arabia launched its intervention to restore Hadi in late March 2015, while also collecting the support from other Arab countries. https://elpais.com/internacional/2020-04-10/yemen-anuncia-su-primer-caso-de-coronavirus.html