WHO declares highest alert over monkeypox outbreak

The monkeypox outbreak has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization.

The classification is the highest alert that the WHO can issue and follows a worldwide upsurge in cases.

More than 16,000 cases have now been reported from 75 countries.

WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says there had been five deaths so far as a result of the outbreak.

There are only two other such health emergencies at present - the coronavirus pandemic and the continuing effort to eradicate polio.

Dr Tedros says the emergency committee had been unable to reach a consensus on whether the monkeypox outbreak should be classified as a global health emergency.

However, he said the outbreak had spread around the world rapidly and he had decided that it was indeed of international concern.

Source: BBC