Tarik Jasarevic, the official representative of the World Health Organization in Geneva, stated that the mortality rate from the Nipah virus, which was detected in India during January 2026, ranges between 40 and 75 percent.
Jazarevic explained that this rate varies depending on the strain of the virus, and the quality and efficiency of the epidemiological surveillance and clinical treatment systems in each country.
The World Health Organization called for preventive measures to reduce the risk of transmission from bats to humans, including boiling the juice of date trees, which is widely consumed in the region, washing and peeling the fruit before eating it, and disposing of fruit that bears traces of bat bites.
The organization also recommended the use of personal protective equipment when handling animals, given that natural cases of infection with the virus have been recorded among pets, particularly pigs, horses, and domestic and wild cats.
In mid-January, authorities in the Indian state of West Bengal reported the discovery of Nipah virus infections among healthcare workers, all of whom are receiving treatment at Parasat Hospital where they work, and are in isolation in a dedicated ward with ventilators.
Despite Western media reports indicating a rise in the number of cases, Indian authorities have not officially reported any new infections.
However, several Asian countries decided to strengthen health and epidemiological surveillance measures in response to these reports.
The World Health Organization classifies the Nipah virus as one of the most dangerous viruses in the world, given the lack of an effective treatment or vaccine against it.
The virus can cause fever and encephalopathy, which is characterized by damage and death of brain cells.
The virus is mainly transmitted through bats and rats, and humans usually become infected by eating fruit contaminated with the saliva of an infected animal, or through transmission of the infection to pets and from them to humans.
The virus is almost never transmitted through the air, but requires direct contact with the body fluids of an infected person.
