By Mohamed al-Samei

SANAA

A total of 2,018 people have been killed by a cholera epidemic in war-torn Yemen since late April, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Saturday.

In a statement, the WHO said 565,041 suspected cases of cholera have been recorded in the country since April 27.

According to the WHO statement, the recorded suspected cases were in 22 out of 23 provinces.

The UN agency said the highest number of fatalities -- 382 cases -- was recorded in the northwestern Hajjah province, while in western Yemen’s Hudaida province only around 70,000 suspected cases were recorded.

Impoverished Yemen has remained in a state of civil war since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

The conflict escalated when Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in 2015 aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and shoring up Yemen’s embattled government.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), over 3 million people have fled their homes since the onset of the Yemen conflict, and more than 20 million throughout the country are in need of humanitarian assistance.