WHO | DD News

June 30, 2026 3:59 PM

Venezuela health system strained after earthquakes, WHO says

Venezuela's healthcare system is under significant strain, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, with some hospitals damaged and others missing staff after deadly twin earthquakes last week. More than 1,700 people have been killed and 5,000 injured after hundreds of buildings were flattened or damaged by the back-to-back 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude quakes. At least three health centres are critically damaged and six others are damaged or only partially functional, WHO spokesperson Christia...

May 24, 2026 9:40 AM

WHO declares Ebola outbreak in DRC and Uganda a PHEIC; India issues travel advisory

In light of the reported outbreaks of Ebola Disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, the World Health Organization (WHO), under the International Health Regulations (IHR), 2005, on 17 May 2026, determined the situation to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has also officially declared the ongoing outbreak of Bundibugyo strain Ebola Virus Disease affecting the Democratic Republ...

May 18, 2026 9:51 AM

WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Congo, Uganda an emergency of international concern

An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has been declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization, after 80 deaths were attributed to the disease. The WHO said the outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, did not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency but there was a high risk the disease could spread further to countries sharing land borders with the DRC. On Sunday, the U.N. health agency said in a statement that 80 susp...

May 17, 2026 11:59 AM

WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Congo, Uganda an emergency of international concern

The World Health Organization on Sunday declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a "public health emergency of international concern", posing risks to neighbouring countries. The WHO said the outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency but that countries sharing land borders with the DRC are at high risk for further spread. The U.N. health agency said in a statement that 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-...

May 15, 2026 3:02 PM

WHO warns loosely regulated nicotine pouches risk youth addiction

The World Health Organization on Friday urged governments to do more to control the sale of nicotine pouches, warning that the highly addictive products were being "aggressively marketed" in ways that particularly appealed to younger people. Pouches, which users insert under their lip to get a nicotine buzz, have rapidly become one of the most important products for big tobacco companies looking to offset the decline in smoking. But campaigners and researchers have criticised their marketing ta...

May 8, 2026 10:29 AM

Five hantavirus infections detected on Atlantic cruise vessel; WHO issues low-risk assurance

The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed five instances of hantavirus linked to fatalities on a cruise vessel currently navigating the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to the confirmed cases, three further individuals are suspected of carrying the Andes strain of the virus. Despite the severity of the situation, the global health body maintains that while more infections could emerge, the broader risk to public health remains minimal. Addressing a press briefing on Thursday, WHO Director-G...

May 4, 2026 4:56 PM

WHO says risk to public is low after suspected hantavirus outbreak hits ship

The World Health Organization said on Monday there was no need for panic and the risk to the public was low after three people died and three fell ill following a suspected outbreak of the rodent-borne hantaviruson a cruise shipin the Atlantic. Netherlands-based Oceanwide Expeditions said it was "managing a serious medical situation" on a polar expedition ship, the MV Hondius, which was off Cape Verde, an island nation off Africa's western coast. The cruise left Argentina about three weeks ...

April 10, 2026 2:45 PM

Lebanon’s hospitals may run out of vital medical supplies within days, WHO warns

Some of Lebanon's hospitals could run out of life-saving trauma medical kits within days as supplies near depletion following mass casualties from large-scale Israeli strikes over the past day, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. The life-saving trauma kits include bandages, antibiotics and anaesthetics to treat patients who sustained war-related injuries, the WHO stated. "Some of the trauma management supplies were in short (supply) and we may run out in a few days," Dr Abdinasir ...

March 23, 2026 10:01 AM

Iran war in perilous stage, peace is the best medicine: WHO chief

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), on Sunday said the war in the Middle East has reached a perilous stage with strikes reportedly hitting the Natanz Enrichment Complex in Iran, and the Israeli city of Dimona, where a nuclear facility is located. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is looking into incidents reported in southeastern Iran, and in Israel’s city of Dimona. “No indications of abnormal or increased off-site radiation lev...

March 18, 2026 10:43 AM

Argentina formally withdraws from World Health Organization

Argentina has formally withdrawn from the World Health Organization (WHO), Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno confirmed. In a social media post on Tuesday, Quirno said the country had communicated its decision through a formal note to the United Nations Secretary-General on March 17, 2025. In line with the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, the withdrawal has now taken effect one year after the notification. “Our country will continue to promote international cooperation in health through ...