For the first time, Rift Valley fever (RVF) has been confirmed outside Africa, in Saudi Arabia, where it has already caused 16 human deaths and massive abortion rates in small ruminants. The Ministry of Health took the necessary measures to control the disease, including the spread of insecticide to kill mosquitoes and larvae.
More than 50 people are reported to have died in Yemen during September from a suspected outbreak of RVF. The governorates of Al-Hudaydah and Sadah on the western coast of Yemen have reported high abortion rates and numerous deaths of young calves and sheep. The affected areas are close to Jizan Province, Saudi Arabia.
As of September 2000, the conditions of introduction of the disease to Saudi Arabia remain unclear and epidemiological investigations are under way.