Khalid Mejdoup
25 May 2022•Update: 25 May 2022
RABAT, Morocco
Three suspected cases of monkeypox in Morocco have tested negative for the virus, the country’s health minister said on Wednesday.
“Morocco is free of monkeypox at present,” Khalid Ait Taleb said in statements cited by local media.
On Monday, Moroccan authorities said that they had detected three suspected cases of the disease.
“The three cases are infected with another disease, which is probably smallpox,” Taleb said.
On Tuesday, the United Arab Emirates detected the first case of monkeypox, becoming the first Arab country to confirm the disease.
According to a last update from the World Health Organization, there are 131 confirmed cases of monkeypox worldwide and 106 other cases are being checked and tested.
Since the beginning of May, several monkeypox cases have been detected in nine EU countries: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the Netherlands, as well as in Canada, Australia, and the US.
Monkeypox is a virus transmitted to humans from animals, with symptoms including fever, rash, and swollen lymph nodes.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar
