WHO seeks answers on Siberian plague worker death as Russia dismisses media reports

The World Health Organization asked Russia on Wednesday for more information about the death of a Siberian plague institute worker, while Moscow said it had shared what it knew and accused media of spreading false reports. The case has raised global concern amid secrecy surrounding the Oct. 2 death. Russian authorities have not linked the death to pneumonic plague, with health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor citing "pneumonia of unknown etiology" and saying extensive testing found no pathogens from the worker's lab. Officials have quarantined a hospital, monitored contacts, and reported no plague cases in the Irkutsk region, while U.S. President Donald Trump said he would discuss the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The dead worker was identified as 28-year-old Darya Shipilova, a diligent researcher at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute, which monitors plague endemic to southeastern Siberia. Pneumonic plague, a severe lung-based form, can spread person-to-person via respiratory particles and be fatal if untreated, though recovery rates are high with timely detection.