So far, three people have died, with several others taken ill, after a hantavirus outbreak aboard the cruise ship, MV Hondius. Hantavirus is a rare rodent-borne illness that has multiple strains of varying severity. With the ship now docked, passengers are being returned to their countries of residence.
With memories of the COVID pandemic still fresh in many people's minds, it's understandable that communities are worried about hantavirus spreading internationally. "I know you are worried," wrote Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), in a letter to the people of Tenerife , Spain, on May 9, 2026.
The recent outbreak of the rare Andes hantavirus has once again drawn attention to terms that became widely familiar during the COVID‑19 pandemic: endemic, epidemic and pandemic. These concepts are often grouped together or misused in public discourse, but in epidemiology they have precise meanings. Importantly, they describe how a disease spreads — not how dangerous it is. So what do the terms actually mean?
Skip next section IN DEPTH — How is the outbreak being contained? May 11, 2026 IN DEPTH — How is the outbreak being contained?
Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was released from prison on parole on Monday. In September 2025, the Supreme Court had ordered the 76-year-old telecommunications billionaire to serve one year in prison for a past corruption conviction. Thaksin walked free from Klong Prem Central Prison in Bangkok around 7:40 a.m. local time (00:40 UCT).
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi has been transferred to a hospital in Iran's capital Tehran for medical treatment, a foundation run by her family said Sunday. Mohammadi has been granted a temporary suspension of her sentence in exchange for the payment of a substantial bail, the foundation said in a statement.
Cori Roberts of St. Cloud, Minnesota, incurred more than $8,000 in medical bills after she was diagnosed at CentraCare with early-stage cervical cancer. She says the health system told her she made too much — about $41,000 a year — to qualify for financial aid.
Prominent Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi in a hospital in Tehran, Iran on May 10, 2026.
Skip next section Pope Leo thanks the Canary Islands for letting the hantavirus-hit ship to anchor May 10, 2026 Pope Leo thanks the Canary Islands for letting the hantavirus-hit ship to anchor Addressing the faithful from St.
Skip next section WHO chief Tedros speaks to MV Hondius captain after arrival in Spain May 9, 2026 WHO chief Tedros speaks to MV Hondius captain after arrival in Spain The secretary-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said he had spoken to the captain of the MV Hondius after arriving in
Health workers in protective gear arrive to evacuate patients from the MV Hondius cruise ship at a port in Praia, Cape Verde, Wednesday, May 6, 2026.
Skip next section No passengers with symptoms left on board, cruise company says May 7, 2026 No passengers with symptoms left on board, cruise company says Oceanwide Expeditions, the company running the MV Hondius cruise ship, said in a statement on Thursday that all passengers with symptoms had been taken off the ship.