GENEVA, October 8. /TASS/. Thousands of suspected cases of plague are reported each year in various countries around the world, World Health Organization’s (WHO) Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention Department Director Maria Van Kerkhove said.

"There are thousands of cases of suspected plague every year that happen around the world," she told reporters.

According to Van Kerkhove, between 2019 and 2025, ten countries reported nearly 4,000 suspected human plague cases and 423 related deaths to the organization. She noted that these cases included both the bubonic and pneumonic forms of the disease. The WHO official emphasized that plague is caused by a bacterium and is treatable with antibiotics.