The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
New flu variant is surging, but vaccination still our best bet - WHO
Amid an early start to the Northern Hemisphere influenza season a new variant of the virus is rapidly gaining ground - but vaccination remains the “most effective defence”, the UN health agency said on Tuesday.
Influenza and other respiratory viruses are surging, Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats at the Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management of the World Health Organization (WHO) told reporters in Geneva, and this year is marked by “the emergence and the rapid expansion of a new AH3N2 virus subclade”.
The new variant - called J.2.4.1 or subclade K - was first noted in August in Australia and New Zealand and has since been detected in over 30 countries, she said.
“Current epidemiological data do not indicate an increase in disease severity, although this genetic shift makes a notable evolution in the virus,” Dr Zhang said.
Influenza viruses are constantly evolving, she explained, which is why the influenza vaccine composition is regularly updated.
“WHO tracks these changes, assesses associated risks to public health and makes vaccine composition recommendations twice a year, through a longstanding global system – the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS), in collaboration with other global experts,” Dr. Zhang said.
The new variant is not part of the composition of the latest vaccines produced for the Northern Hemisphere influenza season, the WHO expert explained.
Still, “early evidence suggests that current seasonal vaccines continue to offer protection against severe diseases and reduce the risk of hospital hospitalization,” she said.
WHO estimates that there are around one billion cases of seasonal influenza annually, including up to five million cases of severe respiratory illness. Up to 650,000 deaths each year are owing to seasonal influenza-related respiratory disease.
“Vaccination remains our most effective defence, including against drifted strains, particularly for high-risk populations and those taking care of them,” Dr Zhang insisted.
The WHO expert shared the results of an early estimation of the vaccine’s effectiveness against the new variant, published in the United Kingdom some weeks ago.
“It's quite promising,” she said, pointing to the data which showed that the vaccine is around 75 per cent effective against severe disease and hospitalization in children and around 35 per cent among adults.
Dr Zhang warned that the upcoming holiday season may bring a further surge in respiratory illnesses. “Advanced planning and preparedness efforts, including encouraging vaccination uptake and strengthening health system readiness, are strongly recommended,” she said.
The WHO expert advised countries to strengthen lab diagnostics and year‑round disease surveillance and to participate in the WHO GISRS surveillance network.
The network comprises influenza centres in 130 countries as well as a dozen reference laboratories.
Asked about whether the United States will remain a member of the network next year despite the country’s decision to leave WHO, effective 22 January 2026, Dr Zhang said that “from the flu perspective, from the respiratory surveillance and preparedness perspective, certainly we would need all the countries in the world to participate in the surveillance, preparedness and a response for influenza and other respiratory viruses because we don't know the next pandemic strain, when and where it would emerge”.
“And that time between the emergence and being picked up and characterized and put into vaccines… it would make a lot of difference with regards to the number of lives that could be saved,” she concluded.
-ENDS-
STORY Influenza new variant – WHO
TRT: 2:27”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 16 DECEMBER 2025 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Exterior wide shot: Palais des Nations, Flag Alley.
2. Wide shot: Speakers at the podium of the press conference, speaker on screens; journalists in the Press room.
3. SOUNDBITE (English) – Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management, World Health Organization (WHO): “We have seen the emergence and the rapid expansion of a new AH3N2 virus subclade called J.2.4.1 aliased as K. The subclade K virus was first noted in August in Australia and New Zealand and has since [been] detected in over 30 countries.”
4. Wide shot: Speaker on screens; journalists in the Press room.
5. SOUNDBITE (English) – Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management, World Health Organization (WHO): “Current epidemiological data do not indicate an increase in disease severity, although this genetic shift makes a notable evolution in the virus.”
6. Medium shot: Speakers at the podium of the press conference, speaker on screens.
7. SOUNDBITE (English) – Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management, World Health Organization (WHO): “Although this new variant is not a part of the composition of the current vaccines for Northern Hemisphere season, early evidence suggests that current seasonal vaccines continue to offer protection against severe diseases and reduce the risk of hospitalization. Vaccination remains our most effective defense, including against drifted strains, particularly for high-risk population and those taking care of them.”
8. Medium/wide shot: Speakers at the podium of the press conference, speaker on screens; journalists in the Press room.
9. SOUNDBITE (English) – Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management, World Health Organization (WHO): “In UK some weeks ago they published the early estimation of the vaccine effectiveness data, it's quite promising. They estimated the vaccine effectiveness against that particular new variant.”
10. Wide shot: Speakers at the podium of the press conference, speaker on screens; journalists in the Press room.
11. SOUNDBITE (English) – Dr Wenqing Zhang, Unit Head for Global Respiratory Threats, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Threats Management, World Health Organization (WHO): “From the flu perspective, from the respiratory surveillance and preparedness perspective, certainly we would need all the countries in the world to participate, participate in the surveillance, preparedness and a response for influenza and other respiratory viruses because we don't know the next pandemic strain, when and where it would emerge.”
12. Various shots of journalists in the Press room.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC: Early access to care and oxygen decisive for Ebola patients’ survival – WHO
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), health workers fighting the country’s largest-ever Ebola outbreak are struggling to overcome critical challenges to patient care, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UN
Civilians in Iran are continuing to feel the consequences of months of conflict and military escalation, the UN’s top official in the country has said, as loss of life, damage to civilian infrastructure and mounting economic pressures leave many facing continued uncertainty.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , UNICEF
Aid agencies in Yemen highlighted the growing hunger emergency sparked by renewed fighting between Houthi opposition forces and Government troops, after mobile health clinics reported that hundreds of children displaced by the violence are suffering from the most deadly form of malnutrition.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR
Displacement on the rise in Yemen as fighting continues - UNHCR
As hostilities worsen in Yemen, more people have been fleeing their homes, further intensifying the humanitarian crisis within the region, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM , OHCHR , UNFPA , UNOG , UNHCR , WHO
Yemen’s humanitarian crisis growing by the hour amid spike in displacement
Yemenis displaced by renewed fighting have described fleeing for their lives amid shelling and gunfire, aid agencies reported on Friday, while highlighting the dramatic increase in humanitarian needs in the country and in Djibouti, where thousands have sought shelter.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office issued on Friday a report documenting a shocking pattern of sexual violence amid Russia’s full-scale armed attack on Ukraine.
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | WMO
As world’s water reserves change, countries must prepare for a new reality: WMO
New data showing that rivers were at their lowest level for decades last year provides further evidence that the climate crisis is real and countries must act immediately to protect themselves from the increasing threat to communities and livelihoods, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday.
The key findings from WMO’s State of Global Water Resources 2025 report covering the hydrological cycle and extreme events in the five-year period to last year:
- 2025 was one of driest years for river discharge in 35 years
- Past seven years have seen abnorfmal river flows
- Water storage on Earth’s land surface has decreased in past decade
- Widespread glacier loss across all regions for fourth consecutive year
- Asia and Africa are regions most affected by water-related disasters
- Water data availability has improved, but gaps remain in hard-hit areas
Highlighting the long-term decline in the Earth’s freshwater storage and glacier melt, WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo explained that the planet’s water reserves used to act as a planetary “savings account” that absorbed the occasional dry season, avoiding a water crisis. “One of the central stories of the 2025 report is what is happening to that savings account? And the simple answer is that we are depleting it,” she told journalists in Geneva.
Groundwater reserves are equally stretched and have been in decline since 2014, WMO’s report states, with nearly two-thirds of monitored wells worldwide showing levels lower than the historical norm and indicating a shift “further toward deficit…not recovery”.
“At the same time, we are seeing more water-related disasters,” Ms. Saulo said, while also stressing that the currently strengthening El Niño “will increase the risk of drought in some areas, and flooding in others”.
Glaciers disappearing
In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, every major glaciated region on Earth lost ice mass, leading to short-term hazards including floods and long-term water insecurity, according to WMO.
Responding to a question about whether the changing global water cycle might have contributed to the deadly Nepal-China flooding disaster, Ms. Saulo explained that melting ice and rock was just one factor in the chain of events that ultimately sent a massive and deadly wall of water and debris downstream on 26 August, killing at least 1,367 people.
“You asked if it could happen again? Absolutely; the problem in this region is that there’s 63,700 glaciers at the last count,” she told a Press Conference in Geneva. “Even if you’re looking with remote sensing with satellites at these glaciers, you might see some faults, you might see some slight shifting, that does not mean necessarily catastrophic collapse. So, in order to plan for this, it’s very, very difficult. But the international community is looking very hard at ways in which we can bring people together to solve some of these monitoring issues.”
Data indicates that glaciers shrank between 2023 and 2025 with cumulative losses of 1,400 gigatonnes of water – or about one third of annual fresh water needs.
Every major glacier region on Earth lost ice for the fourth consecutive year.
“All 19 glacier regions around the globe lost ice; in Central Asia, Iceland, the Russian Arctic and western Canada and the United States, it was among the three worst years on record,” said Wayne Jenkinson, WMO’s Director of Hydrology and Cryosphere.
Some regions with smaller glaciers such as Central Europe, the Caucasus, the western Canada and the United States may already have reached “peak water”, Mr. Jenkinson warned.
“After this point, the glacier gives less meltwater each year simply because there is less ice left to melt. That matters for every community downstream that relies on water during hot, dry summers,” he explained.
Narelle van der Wel, WMO’s Head of Cryosphere Monitoring, Predictions and Services, stressed that while some further glacier loss is unavoidable, the eventual scale of the decline is not predetermined.
“Some glacier loss is inevitable, but total loss of glaciers is not yet inevitable,” she said, pointing to emissions reductions as central to limiting future losses.
Preparing for moving baselines
The report does not attribute every observed change to climate change alone. WMO says pressure on water resources and natural variability also contribute.
Mr. Jenkinson said governments need to prepare for “moving baselines” as historical patterns become less reliable.
“The situation 30 years ago is not where we are today,” he said. Countries, he added, need to prepare “for those changes that have really already arrived”.
ends
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , WHO
The deadly Ebola virus outbreak in DR Congo continues to spread across the vast country despite some success in containing it, aid officials said on Tuesday, in a renewed call for international support to help responders on the ground.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | WFP
‘Super El Niño’ and converging crises worsen hunger in South Sudan and across the region - WFP
South Sudan’s hunger crisis is becoming increasingly catastrophic as violence, extreme weather and dwindling aid leave millions without enough food, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UN WOMEN
In war-torn Gaza, a growing number of women-headed households face “impossible decisions” every day, amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes and still-scarce resources, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk made the following remarks to the Enhanced Interactive Dialogue on the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar at the 63rd Human Rights Council.
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today delivered an update on the global human rights situation to the 63rdsession of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.