Health sources have reported at least two suspected cases of mpox in Kabul and Paktia province amid a global emergency alert declared by the WHO due to the virus’s rapid spread across Africa and the potential threat to other continents.
In Kabul, a young girl was hospitalized at the Children’s Health Hospital after showing symptoms of mpox, according to a health source. The girl, from Farza district, was admitted on August 26, as confirmed by a hospital doctor in a voice message to KabulNow.
In Paktia, a young boy was admitted to Kawsar hospital the previous day with similar symptoms of the viral infection, a local source informed KabulNow.
It is unclear whether these cases originated domestically or were contracted abroad. The sources did not specify if the patients have the more serious “Clade 1” strain.
The Taliban Public Health Ministry has not yet commented on these potential cases.
At least two cases of mpox virus were reported in neighboring Pakistan in recent days, one of which came from a Gulf country.
On August 14, the WHO declared a global public health emergency due to an mpox outbreak, formerly known as monkeypox, with the Democratic Republic of Congo as the epicenter. The virus has spread to neighboring African countries and beyond.
Since January 2023, the DR Congo has reported 27,000 cases and over 1,100 deaths, primarily among children.
WHO indicates that mpox spreads through close contact, such as touching, kissing, sex, and close breathing with an infected person. Symptoms include fever, body aches, weakness, headaches, and rashes.
This is the second global emergency alert regarding mpox issued by the WHO in two years.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed serious concern over the emergence of a new mpox clade and its rapid spread, emphasizing the need for a coordinated international response to manage the outbreaks and save lives.
