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A6 WORLD NEWS
Friday 12 May 2023
Mpox no longer a global emergency, WHO says

By MARIA CHENG pain and swollen lymph
AP Medical Writer nodes. The skin lesions can
LONDON (AP) — The World last up to a month and the
Health Organization said disease is spread via close
Thursday that the global physical contact with an
outbreak of mpox, which infected patient or their
initially baffled experts clothing or bedsheets. Most
when the smallpox-related people don’t need medi-
disease spread to more cal treatment to recover.
than 100 countries last Scientists ultimately con-
year, is no longer an inter- cluded that the unprec-
national emergency, after edented outbreak was
a dramatic drop in cases in tied to sex among gay and
recent months. bisexual men at raves in
Last July, WHO Director- Spain and Belgium, mark-
General Tedros Adhanom ing a significant departure
Ghebreyesus declared from the mpox’s typical
mpox, also known as mon- pattern of spread in Africa,
keypox, to be an “extraor- where outbreaks haven’t
dinary” situation that quali- spilled across borders.
fied as a global crisis. In do- European health authori-
ing so, he overruled WHO’s ties said that 98% of mpox
expert committee, which patients are men and of
didn’t recommend the A health professional shows doses of Monkeypox vaccines at the Edison municipal vaccination those, 96% are men who
emergency designation. centre in Paris Wednesday July 27, 2022. have sex with men.
Tedros said the novel way Associated Press Mpox vaccines in rich coun-
mpox was infecting peo- that the recent dramatic backlash against the com- Africa for decades, where tries were quickly rolled out
ple, via sexual contact in decline in cases, with about munities most affected by people are mainly infect- and reports of severe ill-
many countries that had 90% fewer cases in the last the outbreak “has largely ed by animals like wild ness were relatively rare.
never before identified three months, was no lon- not materialized.” rodents. But the disease Cases have since slowed
cases, raised numerous ger an acute concern. The announcement Thurs- wasn’t known to spark to a trickle in Europe and
concerns that warranted “We now see steady prog- day comes after WHO big outbreaks beyond the North America. To date,
more attention; nearly all ress in controlling the out- downgraded COVID-19 continent or to spread WHO says there have been
cases were in men who break based on the lessons last week, when it said easily among people until more than 87,000 cases
were gay, bisexual or had of HIV and working closely the worst part of the pan- last May, when dozens of and 140 deaths worldwide.
sex with other men. It was with the most affected demic was over and that epidemics emerged in Eu- Still, in the last week, WHO
the biggest-ever outbreak communities,” Tedros said. the coronavirus should be rope, North America and said cases spiked by 64%
of mpox. “I’m pleased to declare managed like other respi- elsewhere. compared to the previ-
He said at a media briefing that the mpox is no longer a ratory diseases. Mpox most often causes ous week, with most cases
on Thursday that his expert global health emergency.” Mpox has been established symptoms including a rash, in the Americas and the
committee had concluded He added that the feared in parts of central and west fever, headache, muscle Western Pacific. q

Norway takes over presidency of Arctic Council from Russia

By JAN M. OLSEN from Russia amid questions prompted Western coun- polar bears has been put be complicated without
Associated Press about what role the eight- tries to suspend coopera- on hold, and scientists have cooperation with Russia,
COPENHAGEN, Denmark country intergovernmental tion with Moscow. lost access to important fa- the biggest Arctic nation.
(AP) — Norway on Thursday body can play in protect- The Arctic Council, which cilities in the Russian Arctic. “It is a huge challenge for
took over the Arctic Coun- ing the polar region after doesn’t deal with security Nonetheless, Norway Norway. They have to iso-
cil’s rotating chairmanship the invasion of Ukraine issues but makes binding vowed to keep the coun- late Russia and at the same
agreements on environ- cil’s work moving forward time they have to make
mental protection and as it assumed the rotat- sure not to provoke Russia
gives a voice to the Indig- ing two-year chairman- to dissolve the Council,”
enous peoples of the Arc- ship from Russia. “Norway said Rasmus Gjedssø Ber-
tic region, was one of the will continue to focus on telsen, of the Arctic Univer-
few settings where West- the core issues the Council sity of Norway in Tromsoe.
ern countries and Russia deals with, including the im- He worried that Indigenous
worked together closely. pacts of climate change, peoples might “lose an im-
But the United States, Can- sustainable development portant forum and a promi-
ada, Denmark, Finland, and efforts to enhance the nent platform,” adding
Iceland, Norway and Swe- well-being of people living that many of the groups
den decided to pause in the region,” Norwegian are cross-border organi-
their work with Russia in Foreign Minister Anniken zations and don’t follow
the council shortly after Huitfeldt said. “Together national borders. Six orga-
Moscow launched the full- with the other member nizations representing Arc-
scale war in February 2022. states, we will now explore tic Indigenous peoples are
Large Icebergs float away as the sun rises near Kulusuk, As a result, research involv- how this can be achieved permanent participants of
Greenland, Aug. 16, 2019. ing Russia on issues ranging in practice.” the Arctic Council, which
Associated Press from climate change to Experts say that’s going to was established in 1996.q