Israel

WHO sends first overland convoy from emergencies hub to Beirut

  • Last year, the Dubai logistics hub processed more than 500 emergency orders for 75 countries around the world.
  • The World Health Organization has sent a first overland convoy of medical equipment bound for Beirut from its global emergency logistics hub in Dubai, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Saturday.
  • Last year, the Dubai logistics hub processed more than 500 emergency orders for 75 countries around the world.
The World Health Organization has sent a first overland convoy of medical equipment bound for Beirut from its global emergency logistics hub in Dubai, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Saturday.
The UN health agency has dispatched 22 metric tonnes of "life-saving medicines and trauma and emergency supplies", Tedros said on X.
The supplies are enough to support treatment for 50,000 patients, including 40,000 surgical interventions, he said.
"This is the first land convoy dispatched through a multi-country land bridge from WHO's Global Logistics Hub in Dubai, which has established a new route to keep supplies moving amid growing logistics disruptions across the Middle East region," said Tedros.
The convoy is expected to reach Beirut within a week. 
Lebanon was pulled into the broader Middle East war when Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Israeli-US attacks.
Israel has responded with heavy strikes across Lebanon and ground incursions in the border area, killing more than 1,000 people according to Lebanese authorities.
Lebanon's health system is facing mounting pressure from rising needs, mass displacement, and critical shortages of medicines, supplies and fuel, said Tedros.
The WHO chief said more medical shipments were ready and would be sent soon to support the response in Lebanon.
Last year, the Dubai logistics hub processed more than 500 emergency orders for 75 countries around the world.
Operations were briefly suspended early in the Middle East war due to insecurity, airspace closures and restrictions affecting access to the Strait of Hormuz. The WHO then began looking at potential overland routes.
Tedros raised the plight of health workers in Lebanon, who "continue to operate under difficult conditions".
The WHO has recorded 63 attacks on health care targets in Lebanon since March 2, resulting in 51 deaths and 91 injuries.
Of those attacks, 28 impacted facilities, 23 impacted transport, 32 impacted supplies and 10 impacted warehouses.
Almost all involved the use of heavy weapons.
Though the WHO counts and verifies attacks on health care, it does not attribute blame as it is not an investigation agency.
"WHO calls for the protection of healthcare and urges all parties to choose the life-saving path to peace," said Tedros.
rjm/gv

Women

From bats to bonds: Uganda's 'cricket grannies'

BY MARY KULUNDU

  • The so-called "cricket grannies" are bound together by a growing love of a game they initially knew nothing about but is now helping them manage age-related health conditions, stress and loneliness.
  • Giggles and songs ripple across a field in rural eastern Uganda where elderly women swing cricket bats as a way to reshape what ageing, health and sports can look like in later life.
  • The so-called "cricket grannies" are bound together by a growing love of a game they initially knew nothing about but is now helping them manage age-related health conditions, stress and loneliness.
Giggles and songs ripple across a field in rural eastern Uganda where elderly women swing cricket bats as a way to reshape what ageing, health and sports can look like in later life.
The so-called "cricket grannies" are bound together by a growing love of a game they initially knew nothing about but is now helping them manage age-related health conditions, stress and loneliness.
Clad in floor-length dresses and mostly barefoot, the women, aged 50 to 90, gather weekly at a playground in Jinja district, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) from the capital, Kampala.
Each swing draws cheers from teammates as the women turn Saturday morning practice into a lively spectacle.
"With the exercises I've been doing, my legs used to hurt, but they no longer do," Jennifer Waibi Nanyonga, 72, told AFP.
"I spent the whole of last year without seeing a doctor for my back, yet it had previously been paining me," added the grandmother of 29.
The initiative began in 2025 with just 10 grandmothers in the remote village of Kivubuka and has since grown more than tenfold.
The programme was initially aimed at children, but when cricket coach Aaron Kusasira realised their caregivers had little knowledge of the game and often kept them from joining, he decided to involve the elderly women, too.
"We come here, we jog, we move around, we do some stretches," Kusasira, 26, said.
They "unknowingly have to run because they have to compete," he added. 
Physical inactivity is a leading risk factor for deaths from noncommunicable diseases and, according the World Health Organization, it is more common among women globally.
International health data estimates that sedentary lifestyles are costing public health systems roughly US$27 billion per year, and will continue to rise if activity levels are not improved.

Fresh start

Beyond physical activity, cricket has also fostered a sense of community among the Ugandan grannies.
"When at home, you have no company and spend your time buried in your thoughts," said an elderly woman who only gave her first name, Patriciah.
For others, the weekly meetings have proved cathartic.
"When I arrive here and see my friends, we get together and talk about our problems, we counsel each other," said Jennifer Waibi Nanyonga.
"By the time we return home, everyone is lighter and with a fresh start," she added.
For coach Kusasira, training the women has been a win-win, giving him the opportunity to coach children in the area without opposition.
"From the kids to the elders, provided I see the smiles... it's enough. I know that is a day well spent," he said.
vid-mnk/er/giv/ceg/lga/sbk

obesity

India to tackle global obesity with cheap fat-loss jabs

BY ANUJ SRIVAS

  • The breakthrough comes as patents on semaglutide--the active ingredient in drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy--expired Friday in India, the world's largest supplier of generic medicines.
  • A deluge of weight‑loss drugs is set to transform the global fight against obesity as India prepares to unleash low‑cost generic versions of injections like Ozempic after a key patent expired Friday.
  • The breakthrough comes as patents on semaglutide--the active ingredient in drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy--expired Friday in India, the world's largest supplier of generic medicines.
A deluge of weight‑loss drugs is set to transform the global fight against obesity as India prepares to unleash low‑cost generic versions of injections like Ozempic after a key patent expired Friday.
The move will dramatically widen access to treatments that have long been considered a luxury, especially in middle-income countries, where soaring demand has collided with steep prices.
At clinics across Mumbai, doctors say they are already preparing for an influx in new patients.
More than 50 people walk into endocrinologist Nadeem Rais's office every week seeking weight-loss injections. 
"We have around 70 to 80 patients on active treatment right now," he told AFP. 
"When generics come out and prices drop, that could go up to 200 easily."
His colleague Sunera Ghai agrees saying that demand is "very high" but many "probably aren't taking it just because it is truly a luxury item at this point".
The breakthrough comes as patents on semaglutide--the active ingredient in drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy--expired Friday in India, the world's largest supplier of generic medicines.
By the end of 2026, core patents on semaglutide will have expired in 10 countries that represent 48 percent of the global obesity burden, according to a study published earlier this month by researchers.
These include Brazil, China, South Africa, Turkey and Canada, the study said.

Launching soon

For India's drug giants, this marks the start of an aggressive new race. 
At least four major firms have already prepared generic semaglutide injections, regulatory filings and compliance documents viewed by AFP show.
Some, including Zydus Lifesciences, have announced "Day 1" launches, suggesting generic versions may become available as soon as this weekend in India. 
Research firm Pharmarack estimates the Indian market will soon be flooded with options.
"What we understand is, there will be more than 50 brands that will be launched in the market and there are more than 40 players who will be launching these drugs," Pharmarack's vice president Sheetal Sapale said.
The timing aligns with India's shifting health landscape.
While the country still accounts for a third of the world's undernutrition according to the World Health Organization (WHO), rising incomes and urban lifestyles have pushed obesity rates sharply upward.
Government data released March last year shows 24 percent of women and 23 percent of men are overweight or obese in India.  
"Once a person starts earning money, he becomes more sedentary here," says bariatric surgeon Sanjay Borude. 
"While in first-world countries, the more the money, they become more active and devote time for their health, this is reversed in India."
These flipped economics have worked well for big pharma players like Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk who have been cashing in on the market.
India's weight‑loss drug sales have grown tenfold in five years to $153 million as of 2026, and are projected to soar to over half a billion by 2030. 
But using such drugs can cause side effects including nausea and gastrointestinal issues.

Breaking price barrier

Eli Lilly's Mounjaro became the country's top‑selling drug by value last year, surpassing even common antibiotics. 
Still, high prices -- often 15,000 to 22,000 rupees ($161–$236) a month -- limit access, says Swati Pradhan, who runs a weight-loss clinic in Mumbai. 
She expects patient numbers to rise once generics push treatment costs closer to 5,000 rupees ($60) a month.
The global impact may prove even more profound. 
India supplies more than half of Africa's generic medicines, and cheaper semaglutide could become a lifeline for countries where obesity is rising rapidly but treatment remains unaffordable. 
"Lower‑cost semaglutide could significantly expand access to effective treatment particularly in middle-income countries where price has been a major barrier," Simon Barquera, president of the World Obesity Federation, told AFP. 
"But medication alone will not reverse the global rise in obesity. Obesity is a complex, chronic disease," he said, noting the importance of prevention efforts and healthier environments.
Indian firms will be a key driving force, with Dr Reddy's Laboratories aiming to launch its version of semaglutide in Canada by May 2026.
For patients like 46‑year‑old Sukant Mangal, who lost nearly 30 pounds in eight months, wider access could not come soon enough. 
Many he knows simply abandoned treatment mid‑way when they realised they would have to spend 20,000 rupees ($214) a month for seven to eight months. 
"Had it been cheaper, (it) would've been much easier to have it."
asv/abh/lkd/ane/jm

students

What we know about the UK's deadly meningitis outbreak

BY AKSHATA KAPOOR

  • At least 27 cases were being probed as of Thursday, with 15 confirmed.
  • UK health authorities are probing 27 cases linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak believed to have spread at a nightclub in southeast England.
  • At least 27 cases were being probed as of Thursday, with 15 confirmed.
UK health authorities are probing 27 cases linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak believed to have spread at a nightclub in southeast England.
Here's everything we know about the disease and the outbreak:

What is meningitis?

Meningitis is a potentially deadly infection causing the inflammation of the brain or spinal cord linings, which can lead to sepsis.
Bacterial meningitis, as seen in this outbreak, is rarer and deadlier than the viral type.
Initial symptoms of meningitis include headache, fever, drowsiness and a stiff neck -- but those are symptoms of different illnesses and can hamper prompt diagnosis.
Another sign can be a rash, and the disease can progress rapidly.
"It is certainly not as infective as say flu or COVID-19, and requires often fairly prolonged close contact before transmission takes place," said Andrew Lee, Professor of Public Health at the University of Sheffield.
It can spread through close contact like kissing or the sharing of vapes or drinks.
More than two million people get meningitis worldwide each year,  according to a tracker by the Meningitis Research Foundation -- 80 percent of them in developing countries.
Outbreaks among university students have been particularly common in the West.

Where does the infection come from?

Meningococcal disease is a rare but serious illness caused by the meningococcal bacteria, which can result in meningitis.
It is usually spread by the people who carry the bacteria in the back of their throat or nose but don't develop any symptoms.
"Between 10-24 per cent of the population unknowingly carry this germ at the back of their throats usually without any harm," said Lee.
There are multiple strains of the bacteria. In this outbreak, at least nine of the confirmed cases are of group B meningococcal disease (MenB) -- the most common in the UK.
The epicentre of this outbreak is believed to be Club Chemistry in Canterbury, according to Health Secretary Wes Streeting. At least 10 of the confirmed cases went to the nightclub between March 5-7.

How big is the outbreak?

It has been described as "unprecedented" by Streeting.
At least 27 cases were being probed as of Thursday, with 15 confirmed. That figure has risen rapidly in the last week, with the first case reported on Friday, March 13.
There have also been two deaths.
"The risk of transmission and further cases is usually highest in the first week after contact with a case and the probability rapidly decreases afterwards," Lee said.
Many of those affected are University of Kent students. There have also been cases in four Kent schools and a London higher education institute.
The local authority was unable to confirm whether the outbreak had been contained as of Thursday.
- Why is it unprecedented? - 
Health experts point to the unusual speed and spread of the outbreak in a short timeframe.
In the UK, meningitis tends to occur in small clusters.
"In my 35 years working in medicine, in healthcare and hospitals, this is the most cases I've seen in a single weekend with this type of infection," UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) head Susan Hopkins said.
"This looks like a superspreader event, with ongoing spread within the halls of residence in the universities," Hopkins added.
The UKHSA was alerted to the first case on March 13, and began tracing contacts. France informed UK authorities on March 14 of a case of a person who had been at the university and was hospitalised in France.
Samples collected from patients are being analysed in the laboratory, which could give a better picture about the strain and why the infection has been more invasive.

What has the official response been?

Health authorities are racing to identify close contacts of those who were ill, and have set up multiple health clinics in Canterbury distributing antibiotics.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged anyone at the nightclub on the weekend of the outbreak to seek antibiotics to help halt the spread of the disease.
For the general UK public, "the overall risk remains very low," said Zina Alfahl from the University of Galway's School of Medicine.
Bacterial meningitis usually needs to be treated in the hospital.
It can be prevented through vaccines. The University of Kent has rolled out a targeted vaccination programme to provide 5,000 jabs to students on campus.
While vaccines against some meningitis strains are administered routinely to children in the UK, the shot against MenB has only been part of the immunisation schedule since 2015 -- when the UK became the first country in the world to add the jab to its programme.
As people rush to buy vaccines in response to the outbreak, health minister Streeting said it was "not necessary".
burs-aks/jkb/pdw

students

UK meningitis outbreak cases rise to 27: official

  • The number of cases being probed by UK authorities has risen since Tuesday from 15 to 27, authorities confirmed on Thursday, amid fears the disease could spread as students head home for the Easter vacation.
  • The number of meningitis cases being probed by UK authorities has risen to 27, health officials said Thursday, following an unprecedented deadly outbreak centred on a university.
  • The number of cases being probed by UK authorities has risen since Tuesday from 15 to 27, authorities confirmed on Thursday, amid fears the disease could spread as students head home for the Easter vacation.
The number of meningitis cases being probed by UK authorities has risen to 27, health officials said Thursday, following an unprecedented deadly outbreak centred on a university.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said in a statement: "15 laboratory cases are confirmed and 12 notifications remain under investigation, bringing the total to 27". 
Two people have died since the epidemic came to light at the weekend, centred on the University of Kent in southeastern Canterbury and a local nightclub popular with students.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has led urgent calls for young people who visited the nightclub on the weekend of the outbreak to come forward, adding health experts were working to identify close contacts of those who were ill.
Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, he asked "anyone who attended Club Chemistry on March, 5, 6th or 7th to come forward, please, to receive antibiotics".
The university has rolled out a targeted vaccination programme for meningitis B -- a deadly bacterial strain -- for some 5,000 students. Hundreds of students queued at the campus on Wednesday to get the jab.
The number of cases being probed by UK authorities has risen since Tuesday from 15 to 27, authorities confirmed on Thursday, amid fears the disease could spread as students head home for the Easter vacation.
French authorities also reported one case involving a person in France, who had attended the University of Kent.
Cases have also been confirmed in students at four schools in Kent, as well as one student at a higher education institution in London, the UK health authorities said.
The two deaths in the outbreak have been identified as an 18-year-old schoolgirl and 21-year-old University of Kent student.
Meningitis is a potentially deadly infection which can lead to sepsis if it affects the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
It is most common in young children, teenagers and young adults.
Initial symptoms of meningitis include headache, fever, drowsiness and a stiff neck -- but those are symptoms of different illnesses and can hamper prompt diagnosis.
It can progress rapidly, with another sign often being a rash, and is spread through prolonged close contact, including kissing or the sharing of vapes or drinks.
At least nine of the confirmed cases are of group B meningococcal disease, according to the UKHSA.
The bacterial strain is rarer and deadlier than the viral type.
Doctors nationwide have been told to prescribe antibiotics to anyone attending their surgeries who visited Club Chemistry between March 5-7 and to University of Kent students "if they have been asked to seek preventative treatment".
jkb/aks/ach 

students

'Happened so fast': UK students panicked by meningitis outbreak

BY AKSHATA KAPOOR WITH HELEN ROWE IN LONDON

  • At least 200 students formed a long queue at the grassy campus near the medieval Cathedral city of Canterbury, as the university rolled-out a targeted vaccination programme for meningitis B -- a deadly bacterial strain.
  • Hundreds of masked-up students queued Wednesday to get vaccinated at the UK university campus at the heart of a deadly meningitis outbreak, as the number of cases rose to 20.
  • At least 200 students formed a long queue at the grassy campus near the medieval Cathedral city of Canterbury, as the university rolled-out a targeted vaccination programme for meningitis B -- a deadly bacterial strain.
Hundreds of masked-up students queued Wednesday to get vaccinated at the UK university campus at the heart of a deadly meningitis outbreak, as the number of cases rose to 20.
"It's quite a concerning thing. It all happened so fast," said Jack Jordan, a 19-year-old student at the University of Kent in southeast England, where the first case was reported on Friday.
By the weekend, one university student and one schoolgirl had died of the infection, with several others seriously ill in hospital in the outbreak, linked to a local nightclub.
At least 200 students formed a long queue at the grassy campus near the medieval Cathedral city of Canterbury, as the university rolled-out a targeted vaccination programme for meningitis B -- a deadly bacterial strain.
Holly Francis, 18, returned to get the jab after moving back home earlier in the week. "Just to be extra safe," she told AFP.
"It kind of came out of nowhere," Francis said. "Everyone was very panicked and worried."
"We got here right away," after being notified about the vaccines, said Irene, 21, adding she had been "isolating" out of caution.
The rest of the campus remained largely empty after exams were cancelled or moved online.
Scattered conversations focused on the disease -- which affects the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer led urgent calls for young people who visited the Canterbury nightclub to come forward, adding health experts were working to identify close contacts of those who were ill.
He asked "anyone who attended Club Chemistry on March, 5, 6th or 7th to come forward, please, to receive antibiotics".

'Deja vu'

The National Health Service (NHS) confirmed that at least 10 of the young people with the illness were at the club on those dates.
The number of cases being probed by UK authorities has risen since Tuesday from 15 to 20, with Health Minister Wes Streeting calling the outbreak "unprecedented."
One involved a patient who had been living in Kent, but who was taken ill in London, amid fears the disease could spread as students head home for the Easter vacation.
French authorities also reported one case involving a person in France, who had attended the University of Kent.
Meningitis is a potentially deadly infection, most common in young children, teenagers and young adults.
Initial symptoms of meningitis include headache, fever, drowsiness and a stiff neck -- but those signs can be vague, hampering prompt diagnosis.
It can progress rapidly and is spread through prolonged close contact, including kissing or the sharing of vapes or drinks.
"Clinicians should have a high index of suspicion where a young person aged 16 to 30 attends with consistent signs or symptoms," the NHS said in its guidance on the outbreak.
It added that illness in the cases linked to the outbreak "has been severe with rapid deterioration".
Glenn Reeve, 27, who went to Club Chemistry on the weekend of the outbreak, said he had been "feeling a bit rough" as he collected antibiotics.
"I felt a little panicky," Reeve told AFP, adding he would be cautious about "sharing drinks and being too close to people".
"It's almost like deja vu from Covid," said the train worker, adding being able to access antibiotics was "reassuring".
"As of 5:00 pm on 17 March, nine laboratory cases are confirmed and 11 notifications remain under investigation," bringing the total to 20, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said in a statement.

'Halt the spread'

Six of the confirmed cases are of group B meningococcal disease, according to the UKHSA.
The bacterial strain is rarer and deadlier than the viral type.
Doctors nationwide have been told to prescribe antibiotics to anyone attending their surgeries who visited Club Chemistry between March 5-7 and to University of Kent students "if they have been asked to seek preventative treatment".
The UKHSA said it was also investigating the case of a baby with confirmed meningococcal group B infection, but who was apparently not linked to the outbreak.
The baby girl is reportedly in hospital in nearby Folkestone.
Children in Britain are usually routinely vaccinated against meningitis B with three doses given at eight and 12 weeks and one year.
Another vaccination targeting meningococcal groups A, C, W and Y is offered to children aged 14.
har-pdh-aks/jkb/yad

vaccines

Vaccines facing misinformation spike: WHO experts

BY ROBIN MILLARD

  • "Emerging challenges for the future include uncertain funding for vaccine research and development, and misinformation and distorted information that erodes public trust in vaccines," said SAGE. "Protecting trust and countering misinformation will be a central focus in 2026."
  • Vaccine programmes are being challenged by rising misinformation and an uncertain pipeline for research funding, the World Health Organization's immunisation experts said Wednesday.
  • "Emerging challenges for the future include uncertain funding for vaccine research and development, and misinformation and distorted information that erodes public trust in vaccines," said SAGE. "Protecting trust and countering misinformation will be a central focus in 2026."
Vaccine programmes are being challenged by rising misinformation and an uncertain pipeline for research funding, the World Health Organization's immunisation experts said Wednesday.
And the war in the Middle East will likely hamper the fight against polio, the WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) said.
The group held its biannual meeting last week, focusing on Covid-19 jab recommendations, typhoid vaccine dosing schedules and oral polio vaccine doses in routine immunisation.
"Emerging challenges for the future include uncertain funding for vaccine research and development, and misinformation and distorted information that erodes public trust in vaccines," said SAGE.
"Protecting trust and countering misinformation will be a central focus in 2026."
WHO vaccines chief Kate O'Brien said resources would be targeted this year on protecting the roll-out of core immunisation programmes.
"We're in a really deeply changing world for infectious diseases and for vaccine programmes," she said, due to conflicts, economic challenges and health budgets being cut.
Trust in vaccines is being "threatened by misinformation", she told a press conference.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the US health chief, has long voiced anti-vaccine rhetoric and inaccurate claims connecting vaccines and autism.
A WHO review of all available evidence issued in December reaffirmed there is no link between vaccines and autism -- contrary to the theories being propagated in the United States and beyond.
"Vaccines do not cause autism and they never have caused autism," stressed O'Brien.
She said vaccines had saved 154 million lives over the past 50 years, and more than 30 diseases could be prevented through immunisation.
"The risk is about backsliding, or even countries deciding that they can't afford all of the vaccines that are in their programme," she said.

Crisis and response cycle

The group voiced concern over the ongoing transmission of wild poliovirus in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the persistent detection of vaccine-derived type-2 poliovirus in several African countries, a strain related to the weakened live  poliovirus contained in oral polio vaccines.
"The conflict in the Middle East may well lead to further dissemination of polioviruses, which would then add to the burden to be mopped up in order to reach that eradication goal," SAGE chair Anthony Scott told reporters.
O'Brien added: "There are billions and billions of dollars being spent, day in and day out to destroy lives through wars.
"Does the world have its priorities straight about what we're investing in?"
As for Covid jabs, SAGE said countries should consider routine vaccination twice a year for groups at the highest risk of severe disease, because of the dwindling protection levels beyond six months.
O'Brien said the Covid-19 vaccine market had contracted down to a limited number of manufacturers and types, with mRNA vaccines remaining the dominant form.
She called for more investment, with one priority being to develop pan-coronavirus vaccines that tackle more than just Covid-19, and longer-lasting injections to reduce the repeat jabs burden on health services and the elderly.
But research and development funding tends to follow major outbreaks, meaning "we are always in this cycle of crisis and response", she said.
SAGE executive secretary Annelies Wilder-Smith said "we really need" Covid vaccines that have bigger impact on mild disease and reducing transmission of the virus.
rjm/nl/jhb

health

Greenland's teenage boxers throwing punches to survive

BY FLORENT VERGNES

  • It was also a way to honour their mother, a former Greenland martial arts champion. 
  • When the bell rang, William let out a cry drowned out by the crowd: that night, the Greenlandic teen was boxing for his mother, who killed herself two years ago.
  • It was also a way to honour their mother, a former Greenland martial arts champion. 
When the bell rang, William let out a cry drowned out by the crowd: that night, the Greenlandic teen was boxing for his mother, who killed herself two years ago.
Suicide is one of Greenland's leading causes of premature death and the autonomous Danish territory has one of the highest suicide rates in the world.
An "epidemic", some Greenlanders call it, striking above all teenagers and young adults.
"Come on, crush him!" the crowd shouted, the smell of sweat heavy beneath the Arctic island's flag hanging above the ring.
William, 15, ducked the blows of his Danish opponent before he was hit with a straight punch and collapsed in the arms of the referee.
"I was devastated," he told AFP a few days later from his home in the capital Nuuk. 
"The morning of the match, I woke up crying, thinking of her. I promised her I would win," he said.
William's gaze occasionally drifted to a photograph of his smiling mother, Mette, hung on the wall. 
The former Danish colony faces numerous social challenges, including drug and alcohol addiction and social inequality.
When Denmark launched a major urbanisation drive in the 1970s, hundreds of the island's indigenous Inuit families were moved from their villages and pressed into apartment blocks in larger towns. 
Inuit culture is deeply rooted in the land and tight-knit community life, so leaving behind traditional hunting and fishing livelihoods triggered a sense of dislocation and loss of identity, experts say. 
According to medical journal The Lancet, the displacement left deep trauma and sent suicide rates soaring in the 1980s.
Young Greenlanders still feel the effects of traumas experienced by previous generations, a concept known as intergenerational transmission, another study in the International Journal of Circumpolar Health showed.
And access to mental health support remains limited. 

'Relief'

After his mother's suicide, William turned first to alcohol and drugs. 
His brother Kian, now 19, chose a different form of adrenaline: he pulled on boxing gloves "to clear my head". 
For the pair, boxing became an escape, where they could meet "positive people".
It was also a way to honour their mother, a former Greenland martial arts champion. 
Originally from northern Greenland, Mette had been placed in an orphanage in the capital Nuuk as her parents were unable to care for her.
A pile of her gold medals lay jumbled on the coffee table.
"When we were younger, we used to use her medals as trophies. We lost a couple of them," said William. "I feel like I owe her medals."
In 2023, suicide accounted for 7.4 percent of deaths in Greenland, according to the same study in The Lancet. 
"We all know at least one or two family members or friends who have killed themselves," said Kian. "Or many more."
"Not so long ago, two of my friends committed suicide," added William.
At a gym in Nuuk, a group of youths grunted through push-ups ordered by their coach, 27-year-old former boxer Philippe Andersen.
"Discipline is key," he told AFP. "A couple of months before the fight, no drinking, no smoking, nothing. Nothing fun."
Some may have been bullied, lost loved ones or face social problems "but we try not to think about it while we're boxing".  
"They often have something they're angry about," he said, adding boxing offered them "relief from their daily lives". 
When night falls and the gym empties, Nuuk's streets fill with teenagers. Along the coast, it's not unusual to see a lone teenager staring at the sea. 
Behind them, rows of Soviet-style apartment blocks tower over the cliff, remnants of Denmark's urbanisation drive in the 1970s.
On the crumbling facade of Block T, a light installation paid tribute to the victims of suicide.

Limited help

Despite a pressing need for psychological support, isolation in small settlements, coupled with a shortage of Kalaallisut-speaking staff, severely limits access to care. 
Most consultations take place online. 
But in recent years authorities have strengthened helplines and begun decentralising the training of mental health professionals to improve access to care.
Originally from Qaqortoq in the island's south, the brothers' family moved to the capital 10 years ago in search of a better life. 
This summer, William will leave for Denmark to continue his studies, far from his friends and older brother.
"It's very hard," he said. 
Spurred by his coaches, Kian said he hoped to join him and try out for Denmark's national boxing team -- a way for him "to move on".
fv/cbw/po/rh/giv/jhb

health

Argentina withdraws from World Health Organization

  • "Argentina will continue to promote international cooperation in health through bilateral agreements and regional forums, while fully preserving its sovereignty and its capacity to make decisions regarding health policies," Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno said on X. Last year, Argentina had declared that "the WHO's recommendations are ineffective because they are not based on science, but on political interests."
  • Argentina formally withdrew from the World Health Organization on Tuesday, the foreign minister said, following in the path of the United States which took the same step earlier this year.
  • "Argentina will continue to promote international cooperation in health through bilateral agreements and regional forums, while fully preserving its sovereignty and its capacity to make decisions regarding health policies," Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno said on X. Last year, Argentina had declared that "the WHO's recommendations are ineffective because they are not based on science, but on political interests."
Argentina formally withdrew from the World Health Organization on Tuesday, the foreign minister said, following in the path of the United States which took the same step earlier this year.
The government of President Javier Milei, a close ally of President Donald Trump, had announced its intention to leave the UN health body a year ago, criticizing the WHO's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. 
The Foreign Ministry said Argentina has now completed the withdrawal process within the timeframe stipulated by international treaties.
"Argentina will continue to promote international cooperation in health through bilateral agreements and regional forums, while fully preserving its sovereignty and its capacity to make decisions regarding health policies," Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno said on X.
Last year, Argentina had declared that "the WHO's recommendations are ineffective because they are not based on science, but on political interests."
The United States formalized its WHO withdrawal in January, a year after Trump signed an executive order to exit the multinational grouping on his return to the White House.
WHO has played a role in eradicating smallpox and tackling public health threats like polio, HIV, Ebola and tuberculosis.
In January, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he deeply regretted the move, saying it would make the United States and the rest of the world unsafe.
sa/mel/ial/msp/sms

health

US judge halts implementation of Trump vaccine overhaul

BY CHARLOTTE CAUSIT AND MAGGY DONALDSON IN NEW YORK

  • The decision blocks implementation of the recommendations made by the Kennedy-era ACIP committee. 
  • A US judge on Monday dealt a blow to the Trump administration by blocking the government from implementing major vaccine policy changes made by health chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The federal court in Massachusetts abruptly halted key components of the overhaul that vaccine skeptic Kennedy has rolled out over the past year, also staying the decisions put forth by the health secretary's hand-picked panel that makes immunization recommendations.
  • The decision blocks implementation of the recommendations made by the Kennedy-era ACIP committee. 
A US judge on Monday dealt a blow to the Trump administration by blocking the government from implementing major vaccine policy changes made by health chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The federal court in Massachusetts abruptly halted key components of the overhaul that vaccine skeptic Kennedy has rolled out over the past year, also staying the decisions put forth by the health secretary's hand-picked panel that makes immunization recommendations.
Under Kennedy the US Department of Health and Human Services has announced sweeping changes to the pediatric vaccine schedule, cutting the number of shots universally recommended including for diseases like flu and hepatitis A.
The health secretary additionally stacked a key immunization advisory panel (ACIP) with figures whose anti-vaccine sentiment mirrors his own, having fired the previous members of the influential group.
Several leading medical groups including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Physicians sued over the policy changes, and on Monday Judge Brian Murphy contended that the organizations were likely to succeed in court on their argument that the shifts were "arbitrary and capricious."
"There is a method to how these decisions historically have been made -- a method scientific in nature and codified into law through procedural requirements," the judge wrote. 
"Unfortunately, the government has disregarded those methods and thereby undermined the integrity of its actions."
The decision blocks implementation of the recommendations made by the Kennedy-era ACIP committee. 
It also said the January memo that upended the childhood vaccine schedule and reduced universal immunization recommendations had not followed proper procedure, as it bypassed the ACIP panel entirely, a move Murphy determined was unlawful.
Health and Human Services spokesperson Andrew Nixon told AFP in a statement that the department "looks forward to this judge's decision being overturned."
An HHS official told AFP a two-day meeting of the ACIP committee scheduled for this week had been postponed.
The American Academy of Pediatrics called the order "historic and welcome," saying in a statement the changes had "sowed chaos and confusion for parents and pediatricians across the country."
"This decision effectively means that a science-based process for developing immunization recommendations is not to be trifled with and represents a critical step to restoring scientific decision-making to federal vaccine policy that has kept children healthy for years."

Likely appeal

The ruling will almost certainly be appealed, opening the door to a lengthy legal roller coaster that will pit major medical organizations against the federal government, as the question of who has the final say on shaping immunization policies weaves its way through the courts.
Since Kennedy's revamped ACIP began meeting last year, they have made numerous decisions that have alarmed the medical establishment.
Prominent experts in the medical field have said the panel's advice has endangered public health and the nation's children.
For example, the panel no longer recommends that all newborns in the United States receive a hepatitis B vaccine, a highly infectious disease that can lead to incurable liver damage.
In his decision Monday, the judge wrote that "of the fifteen members currently on ACIP, even under the most generous reading, only six appear to have any meaningful experience in vaccines -- the very focus of ACIP."
mdo/msp

health

Filipinas seek abortions online in largely Catholic nation

BY PAM CASTRO AND ARA EUGENIO

  • In January, a lawmaker filed a resolution calling for an investigation into the growing number of Filipinas resorting to social media for help in ending their pregnancies. 
  • Jane had been bleeding heavily for days before finally seeking help, not from a hospital but from the man who sold her the pills meant to end her six-week pregnancy.
  • In January, a lawmaker filed a resolution calling for an investigation into the growing number of Filipinas resorting to social media for help in ending their pregnancies. 
Jane had been bleeding heavily for days before finally seeking help, not from a hospital but from the man who sold her the pills meant to end her six-week pregnancy.
Abortions are strictly outlawed in the mainly Catholic Philippines, forcing women to turn to a patchwork of providers operating in the online shadows.
While rare in practice, Philippine law allows for prison terms of up to six years for abortion patients and providers, leaving thousands of Filipinas to search for solutions in online forums where unlicensed sellers promote abortifacients.
"It was very painful, as if my abdomen was being twisted," Jane, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, told AFP, describing the visit where the seller, a purported doctor, inserted a pill into her cervix without anaesthesia.
Jane was warned not to disclose the abortion if anything went wrong, she said.
"I heard stories that some women were reported to the police, ignored or left to die when they reached the hospital," the 31-year-old added.
While post-abortion care has been legal for over a decade, many health workers remain hesitant to provide it, over fears of being arrested or losing their licenses, said Junice Melgar, whose Likhaan Center for Women's Health serves Manila's poorest.
"I believe that a lot of providers... would like to help. They might find it ethical, but it's a scary proposition for them," she said.

'A chilling effect'

As women have flocked to online sources, authorities have taken notice.
In January, a lawmaker filed a resolution calling for an investigation into the growing number of Filipinas resorting to social media for help in ending their pregnancies. 
The Senate last year also urged the Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on what a top lawmaker called "brazen crimes".
But Jane, while acknowledging the potential safety issues, said she feared targeting online sources would only further limit access to a much-needed medical procedure.
"There might be a chilling effect, and we won't know where else we can get the proper information," she said.
A reproductive health services law passed in 2012 aimed to normalise comprehensive sex education and free contraceptives across the country.
But the measure faced fierce opposition from the Catholic Church and conservative legislators, who weakened its implementation.
Funding was slashed, healthcare workers were allowed to refuse services, and access to emergency contraceptives like Plan B was heavily restricted.
"The Catholic Church will always oppose abortion and its applications," priest Dan Cancino of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines told AFP, citing its commitment to the preservation and dignity of human life.
In rare situations, such as ectopic pregnancies that threaten a woman's life, interventions that might lead to fetal death can be morally permissible, he said.
But the Church's position against "intentional abortions" is absolute, he said, even in cases of rape or on grounds of mental health or financial hardship.
Cancino said the Church provides support to mothers and children facing unintended pregnancies, though he admitted those efforts remain "very fragmented".
Lawyer Clara Padilla of the Philippine Safe Abortion Advocacy Network (PINSAN), meanwhile, said even legal exceptions for rape, incest or health risks would "not be enough", noting most abortions were sought by married women with at least three children.

'People need this'

More than 250 women are hospitalised every day due to complications from unsafe abortions, according to a PINSAN study. About three of them die.
Padilla said her group has documented cases of women binding their stomachs, inserting wire hangers into their cervix, or even asking people to kick them in attempts to induce abortion.
"Some people are opposing (abortion) because it's against their morals," Padilla said.
"We're just saying that people need this, and you shouldn't be barring them from accessing healthcare that can save their lives."
Even if contraceptives were easily available, abortion would remain a necessary backstop for women for whom an unplanned pregnancy can mean sliding further into poverty and violence, said the Likhaan Center's Melgar.
"There will be rapes, there will be other circumstances where protection simply does not work," she said.
Jane, who said she suffered from abdominal pain, weakness and loss of appetite for up to three months after the procedure, told AFP she would make the same decision if forced to do it over.
"When you talk about abortion in the Philippines, the discussion is reduced to whether it is legal or moral. People forget that abortion is a health issue," she said. 
"This is my body, my health, my life, and it's up to me to decide what happens to it."
pam-ae/cwl/lkd/mjw