The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday dispatched a plane carrying a shipment of 60,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to war-ravaged Yemen, a government official said.

The Emirates Red Crescent (ERC), the UAE's humanitarian arm, delivered the first medical aid shipment to Yemen's strategic Island of Socotra in a bid to support the local authorities' efforts to combat the pandemic, the government source said on condition of anonymity.

"The first shipment that includes doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine will be distributed freely to provide greater protection for the vulnerable, the elderly and those with chronic diseases in Socotra," the source added.

In April, the UAE started the first-phase construction of eight medical facilities in Yemen's southeastern province of Hadramout, aiming at improving the country's health sector aggravated by years of deadly conflict.

Since 2015, the UAE has provided more than 6 billion U.S. dollars in aid to the war-torn Yemeni regions, to help rebuild various sectors in the country, including vital infrastructure, and to restore health and social services, according to UAE officials.

The UAE is also an active member of the Saudi-led Arab coalition that has been fighting the Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015.

The impoverished Arab country has been locked in a civil war since late 2014, when the Houthis overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces including the capital Sanaa.