War-torn Yemen reports its first two coronavirus deaths

Yemenhas recorded its first deaths from the coronavirus pandemic, after the war-torn country confirmed five new cases, stoking fears of a major outbreak.

The country's healthcare system has been blighted by years of war that have driven millions from their homes and plunged the country into what the United Nations describes as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

It has been mired in war since the Houthi group ousted the internationally recognised government from power in the capital Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led alliance to intervene in March 2015.

According to its health ministerNasserBaoum,five COVID-19 cases with two deaths were reported in Aden and noted that the prevalence of other diseases with similar symptoms, such as dengue fever, made it difficult to detect coronavirus infections without testing.

The deaths come after aid organisations warned any coronavirus outbreak could have dire consequences after six years of civil war.

The United Nations has said it fears the novel coronavirus could be spreading undetected in a country where millions face famine and lack medical care after Yemen reported its first case of COVID-19 in the southern province of Hadhramout on April 10.