The African Union’s health agency, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, is to hold a briefing on the spread of a new more dangerous strain of the mpox virus.

The epicentre is the DR Congo, especially among IDPs in the north-east.

In the past two weeks, first cases also have been reported in Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and Kenya.

Mpox is a viral infection that can spread through close contact.

It is usually mild and causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions.

The DRC mpox strain is deadlier and more transmissible – with a 10% fatality rate among children, according to DRC researchers.

The DRC government says it has seen an ‘exponential increase’ in cases.

As of August 3rd, CDC had registered 455 deaths in DRC since JAN 2024.

The World Health Organization said August 4th it was considering convening an expert committee to advise on whether to declare an international emergency.

Aljazeera.