Afghanistan Records 4 New Polio Cases as 2026 Total Rises to 19, WHO Says

Afghanistan Records 4 New Polio Cases as 2026 Total Rises to 19, WHO Says

Afghanistan has recorded four new cases of wild poliovirus type 1, bringing the country’s total confirmed polio infections to 19 in 2026, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The latest figures highlight the continued spread of the virus in Afghanistan, one of only two countries where wild polio remains endemic. The WHO said in its latest Eastern Mediterranean polio bulletin that the new cases were confirmed in Herat, Paktika and Ka…

Afghanistan’s polio cases rise to 19 in 2026, WHO says

Four new cases of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) have been reported in Afghanistan, bringing the country’s total to 19 so far this year, according to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region polio bulletin. The cases were reported in Herat, Paktika and Kandahar provinces. Two were recorded in Herat’s Shindand and Adraskan districts, while Paktika’s Dila district and Kandahar’s Arghestan district each reported one ca…

WHO reports four new polio cases in Afghanistan, bringing 2026 total to 19

Four new cases of wild poliovirus type 1 have been reported in Afghanistan, bringing the country’s total to 19 so far in 2026, according to a new update by the World Health Organization. The four newly reported cases include two in Herat province — one each in Shindand and Adraskan districts — and one each in Dila district of Paktika province and Arghistan district of Kandahar province, the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office said in its…