Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Oct. 10 said it still doesn't know what caused the pneumonia that killed a Russian anti-plague researcher earlier this month, but it noted that no case of plague has been registered.
An infectious diseases hospital in the town of Shelekhov, where an employee of the Irkutsk Antiplague Research Institute died on Oct. 2, in the Irkutsk region, on Oct. 7, 2026. Tatyana Makeyeva/AFP via Getty ImagesMeanwhile, the U.N.-backed health body wrote that based on information from Russian officials, WHO "has not identified evidence of ongoing transmission associated with this event."
"A key uncertainty remains the absence of a confirmed diagnosis in the deceased laboratory worker," the Oct. 10 statement reads.
The organization said it will monitor the situation and decide whether there are any potential health risks associated with the woman's death if more information becomes available.
"Test results were negative for the tested high-threat pathogens," WHO wrote, adding it has not found any "evidence of ongoing transmission associated with this event."
A Russian health body provided information to WHO and confirmed the lab researcher's death. It said that "no case of plague had been registered recently in Irkutsk Oblast," where the laboratory is located, according to the statement.
"Preventive and control measures had been implemented in accordance with national
