Recent News

By Region: Middle East

Kuwait Reports First MERS-coronavirus Cases

(VoiceofAmerica) Kuwait reported its first two cases of the deadly MERS coronavirus on Wednesday, the fifth Gulf Arab country where the strain has emerged since the outbreak began in neighboring Saudi Arabia last year. A 47-year-old man is in a critical condition, Kuwaiti state news agency KUNA said, citing a statement from the Health Ministry.  Read More »

Polio virus strain in Syria confirmed as being from Pakistan, WHO said

(FoxNews) Polio that has crippled at least 13 children in Syria has been confirmed as being caused by a strain of the virus that originated in Pakistan and is spreading across the Middle East, the World Health Organization said. Genetic sequencing shows the strain found in Syrian children in Deir al-Zor, where an outbreak was  Read More »

One of 2 remaining types of polio may be wiped out

(TheCanadianPress) The effort to rid the world of polio is too often a journey of one step forward and two steps back, with the heartbreaking news that polio is crippling toddlers in war-ravaged Syria the most recent evidence of that stuttering progress. Still, there is some good news on the polio front. Sunday marks one  Read More »

Next Steps in U.S.-Iran Diplomacy: Vaccines

(PacificStandard) September’s historic dialogue between President Obama and Iran’s President Rouhani together with calls to seek constructive engagement opens the door to a little known but powerful foreign policy instrument, which could simultaneously create new life-saving vaccines. The cornerstone of vaccine diplomacy is two or more countries putting aside their ideological differences to engage in  Read More »

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – update

(WorldHealthOrganization) WHO has been informed of an additional laboratory-confirmed case of infection with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) from Saudi Arabia. The patient is a 56-year-old woman with underlying medical conditions from the Eastern Region. She became ill on 26 October 2013 and died on 30 October 2013. She had no contact with animals,  Read More »