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Dhaka, November 8, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Bangladesh's measles outbreak has claimed two more lives, taking the combined number of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 1,282 in 2026, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The two latest fatalities, reported in the 24 hours up to 8 am on Sunday, have been classified as suspected measles deaths. The total number of suspected fatalities has consequently increased to 1,177, while confirmed deaths remain at 105.
The outbreak also continued to spread, with 1,138 new suspected cases reported during the 24-hour period. This took the cumulative number of suspected cases to 238,840.
Bangladesh recorded another 87 laboratory-confirmed infections, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 24,442, United News of Bangladesh reported, citing official health data.
Since March 15, a total of 212,979 patients with suspected measles have been admitted to hospitals across the country. Of these, 204,049 have recovered, according to the DGHS.
The outbreak has triggered political criticism over Bangladesh's immunization programme. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had described the epidemic in October as the result of alleged state negligence and the breakdown of the country's long-standing vaccination system.
In an interview with The Sunday GuardianHasina accused the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim administration of disrupting vaccine procurement and allowing immunization coverage to decline. She alleged that measles-rubella vaccine stocks were exhausted in March 2026 and that a supplementary vaccination drive was not launched on schedule.
She also criticized the government led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, alleging that it failed to respond adequately after the scale of the outbreak became apparent.
Hasina called for uninterrupted vaccine supplies, targeted immunization campaigns, stronger disease surveillance and pediatric healthcare facilities, besides an independent investigation into the alleged procurement and vaccination failures.