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NEW YORK: The World Health Organization is planning to rename monkeypox, designating it as “MPOX” in an effort to destigmatize the virus that gained a foothold in the United States earlier this year, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
The decision, which could be announced as early as Wednesday comes in response to growing pressure from senior Biden officials, who privately urged WHO leaders to change the name, Politico added.
FAIZABAD, Afghanistan: At least 12 people were killed and three seriously injured when a minibus overturned and crashed into a valley in northeastern Afghanistan, local officials said on Saturday.
The bus was traveling along a road in Badakhshan province toward the provincial capital, Faizabad, but “due to severe road damage, it veered off course and fell into a valley,” a provincial police spokesperson said.
“The victims of this incident include men, women, and children... and the injured are in severe condition,” the spokesperson said.
Deadly traffic crashes are common in Afghanistan, due in part to poor roads after decades of conflict, dangerous driving and a lack of regulation.
A bus carrying migrants returning from Iran crashed in western Herat province in August last year, killing 78 people, including more than a dozen children.
The bus collided with a motorcycle and a truck, according to authorities, making it one of the deadliest crashes in years.
Another 25 people were killed in late August when a bus overturned on a highway near the capital, Kabul, “due to the driver’s negligence,” officials said.
