Measles, malnutrition kill nearly 100 in Indonesia's Papua
A measles outbreak and a spike in cases of malnutrition in Indonesia's easternmost Papua province have killed at least 97 people, mostly indigenous children.
An army chief in the provincial capital of Jayapura, Boni Christian Pardede, said Monday that 27 people in one sub-district had died from malnutrition and an outbreak of diarrhea.
He said the situation in Okbab sub-district was first reported last week by church activists, who said 23 children and four adults had died. Pardede said the military has sent a 12-member health team.
Meanwhile, a health official in remote Asmat district said the death toll from a measles outbreak and malnutrition since September has risen to 70 people.
Papua and neighboring West Papua are Indonesia's poorest provinces and home to a decades-old independence movement and insurgency.
- Star
