Health authorities in the Houthi rebel-held Yemeni capital Sanaa on Friday announced the spread of COVID-19 pandemic in several provinces in northern Yemen.

"We confirm the disease is rife ... there are so many COVID-19 cases in several provinces including the capital Sanaa," the health authorities said in a statement.

The authorities complained about inadequate testing capacity, ventilators and protective gears, blaming the UN aid agencies for not providing what they said "the required assistance to combat the coronavirus in Yemen."

They added they would not order full lockdown in the cities under their control due to the stop of salary payment to thousands of state employees and millions of residents reliant on daily wage since the war erupted five years ago.

Meanwhile, the internationally-recognized government calls on donors and relevant international humanitarian organizations to provide support to help contain the pandemic in the country.

Yemen has been mired in civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized much of the country's north and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of Sanaa.