Disease infects 160 people but is not a ‘global emergency’

The World Health Organisation says the spread of a mysterious virus from the Middle East to South Korea doesn’t merit being declared a global emergency despite infecting more than 160 people in the biggest outbreak outside the Arabian peninsula.

In a statement, the UN health agency called the epidemic “a wake-up call” and warned all countries to prepare for potential outbreaks of the Middle East respiratory syndrome, or Mers.

WHO acknowledged there were still fundamental gaps in its understanding of the disease nearly three years after Mers was first identified.