Russia dismisses reports of second plague case as ‘false information’

What the report says

Russia has rejected media reports that a second worker at a plague research institute in Siberia may have been infected with pneumonic plague, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov calling much of the coverage “false information” and saying people should rely on official statements from the health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor. The comments came after Russia acknowledged a 28-year-old woman employed at an institute in Irkutsk region died after a diagnosis described as pneumonia of unknown cause, a case that has raised international concern because of the possible link to plague.

The World Health Organization said it has asked Moscow to formally respond to reports of another employee with pneumonia of undetermined origin. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency had received information from two news outlets, including one Russian outlet, and could not ignore it. WHO emergency officials said they still do not know the causative agent behind the first death and want prompt follow-up information.

The United States and the European Union have also pressed Russia for transparency. Separately, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the risk to the United States remains extremely low, while noting that it is monitoring travel from the region with other federal agencies. The case matters because pneumonic plague can be severe, and the lack of clear information has fueled concern beyond Russia.