Bluetongue cases in UK rise with 41 animals infected

Bluetongue continues to spread in the UK with the disease now confirmed in 41 animals at 13 infected premises, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Following reports of clinical suspicion in sheep and cattle on three new premises in Norfolk and Suffolk, bluetongue serotype 3 (BTV-3) has been confirmed at these premises.

Due to continued evidence of local transmission of the virus, the restricted zone and infected area has been extended to cover Essex. It now covers the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex.

The first case of bluetongue in the UK since March 2024 was detected in a single sheep at a premises near Haddiscoe, South Norfolk on August 26. Since then, the disease has been confirmed on 12 further premises.

Bluetongue

Movement restrictions apply to all ruminants and camelids moving out of the zone, and to the movement of their germinal products within the zone, the Defra said.

Defra urges farmers to only move animals within the extended zone where this is absolutely necessary. To move animals in a disease control zone in England, Scotland or Wales, farmers need a licence.

Free testing is available for animals moving from high-risk counties outside of the restricted zone to elsewhere in Great Britain, however, priority will be given to testing within the temporary control zone.

This includes animals sold at a market within a high-risk county and moved elsewhere. The high-risk counties are Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Kent and East Sussex, according to the Defra.

Irish livestock

Following the outbreak of the disease in the UK last week, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) advised farmers to stay vigilant due to an "increasing risk" to Irish livestock.

Livestock farmers have been advised to review their farm biosecurity arrangements, avoid introducing cattle or sheep from affected areas and countries, and to report any suspicion of disease to the DAFM.

Bluetongue virus 3 (BTV-3) has been spreading rapidly across north-western Europe since last autumn. There are a growing number of cases in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium, with the disease also confirmed in France, Luxembourg and Denmark.

The high-risk period in Ireland runs from spring until late autumn when midges are most abundant. It is crucial to report any suspicion of bluetongue to the local Regional Veterinary Office (RVO) without delay, the DAFM said.

• Greece struggles with 'highly contagious goat plague' outbreak, imposes livestock restrictions
• New Zealand's ratio of sheep to humans at lowest point in 170 years
• First recorded case of cow to human bird flu transmission occurred in US, new study reveals
• Ireland suffers decrease of 100,000 breeding ewes in 2023; sheep numbers fall across Europe

• Japan reports world's first death from Oz virus - first cases of malaria reported in US in decades follows 2018 trial of Gates Foundation GMO mosquitoes in Florida
• WHO declares mpox global health emergency Africa amidst outbreak of virulent new variant
• Mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus found in Israel as it records 3rd death amidst 'outbreak'; Whooping cough cases also rise
• Greece struggles with 'highly contagious goat plague' outbreak, imposes livestock restrictions
• Ground-up chicken waste and excreta fed to cattle may be behind bird flu outbreak in US cows

WHO calls emergency meeting to discuss jump in mpox cases from DRC

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called an emergency meeting to discuss a jump in mpox cases spreading from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

"In light of the spread of mpox outside DRC, and the potential for further international spread within and outside Africa, I have decided to convene an Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations to advise me on whether the outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern," the WHO chief said in a social media post.

The committee will advise the WHO on the question of whether the outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) - the highest level of alarm that the WHO can sound.

The WHO said the meeting would occur "as soon as possible", but has yet to offer specific dates.

Mpox is largely spread through sexual contact and is especially prevalent among men who have sex with other men.

However, in the Reuters article it was noted that this new strain seems to be spreading with greater ease with normal close contact resulting in infection.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said last week that mpox has been detected in 10 African nations this year, including the DRC, where more than 96 percent of all cases are located.

The agency added that cases are up 160 percent this year, with deaths increasing by 19 percent. The disease also appears especially prevalent among the young, with 70 percent of cases and 85 percent of deaths in the DRC occurring among children under the age of 15.

The WHO declared mpox, also known as monkeypox, a global emergency in 2022 after it spread to more than 70 countries.

"We do not want the world to sit and watch and wait," said Maria Van Kerkhove, who leads WHO's outbreak department. "The time [to act] is now."

• WHO warns 'vaccine-derived' polio spreading across Gaza as Israel vaccinates its troops
• RNA Vaccines, Obedience and Eugenics
• 'SMALLPOX found in Merck lab in Philadelphia, FBI launch urgent probe

• First-ever case of ringworm as an STD reported, doctors warn it's highly contagious
• 'Flesh-eating' streptococcal disease cases skyrocket in Japan in just 1 year, surge followed covid vaccine rollout
• Lethal Sex -The Rise of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in the Age of Postmodernist Liberalism

• Contaminated water supply sickens residents in 2nd UK region in just 10 days
• Tyson Foods dumps 87 BILLION gallons of toxic waste, including cyanide, blood and feces into US rivers and lakes in just 4 years

The Israeli Ministry of Health reported in a statement on Tuesday that a patient died of West Nile fever, bringing the total number of deaths from the virus in the current outbreak in the country to three.

The ministry noted that the deceased patient was hospitalized at the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel.

In addition, there is an ongoing investigation into whether the virus caused the death of another patient at Beilinson Hospital, also located in central Israel.

Meanwhile, the ministry reported 10 new cases of infection with the virus, which is transmitted by mosquito bites. This brought the total number of cases since the beginning of May to 42, with 36 patients hospitalized, including five currently ventilated.

Later in the day, the Israeli health and environmental protection ministries said in a joint statement that mosquitoes infected with the virus were detected at Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv.

Following the detection, the Environmental Protection Ministry instructed the Israel Airports Authority to expand the monitoring and extermination system in the airport area.

Also on Tuesday, the Health Ministry reported the death of a five-week-old baby from the Jerusalem area due to Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, noting that his mother was not vaccinated against the bacterium during pregnancy.

Since January 2023, Israel has witnessed a rise in whooping cough cases, prompting intensified efforts by the ministry to combat the disease.

• 'Outbreak' of West Nile Fever reported in Israel, 7 hospitalized in Tel Aviv
• Vaccines begin flowing into Gaza amidst soaring childhood disease infection rates
• UN warns Gaza faces imminent threat of starvation, thirst, and disease outbreaks due to Israel's blockade