OTTAWA, May 27 — The Public Health Agency of Canada has confirmed 10 new cases of monkeypox, including the first case in the province of Ontario, bringing the country's total to 26 cases, the agency said on Thursday.

The province of Quebec has reported 25 cases, an increase of nine cases from Wednesday, the agency said. More cases are likely to be confirmed in coming days after samples from 'multiple jurisdictions' are tested, it said.

Canada confirmed its first two cases of monkeypox last week.

Monkeypox is a rare viral infection similar to human smallpox, though milder, first recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 1970s. The number of cases in West Africa has increased in the last decade.

About 200 confirmed cases of monkeypox have been detected so far in more than 20 countries where it is not endemic, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. — Reuters

GENEVA, May 26 — A World Health Organisation assembly today voted to adopt a Western-led resolution condemning Russia's actions in Ukraine which it says led to a health emergency.

The resolution was approved by 88 votes in favour and 12 against, with 53 abstentions, the meeting's president Hiroki Nakatani said prompting a standing ovation by the resolution's backers.

Typically, the WHO annual assemblies make decisions by consensus. A parallel proposal submitted by Russia which mimics the language of the original one has yet to be voted on by the member states. — Reuters

MINSK, May 26 — Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko today ordered the creation of a new military command for the south of country, bordering Ukraine, according to a video release.

Belarus planned to deploy special operations troops in three areas near its southern border with Ukraine as Lukashenko talked up the role of Russian-made missiles in boosting the country's defences. — Reuters

SEOUL, May 26 — A case of African swine fever was detected on a farm containing around 1,500 animals in South Korea's northeastern county of Hongcheon, the food and agriculture ministry said today.

All the animals on the farm were killed in order to contain the spread of the pathogen, and an investigation was to be launched on other pig farms in the region, the ministry said.

Authorities issued a standstill order on all pig farms and other livestock related facilities until Monday.

African swine fever is harmless to humans but often fatal to pigs, leading to financial losses for farmers. It originated in Africa before spreading to Europe and Asia, and has killed hundreds of millions of pigs worldwide.

The latest outbreak marks the first time in over seven months for the fever to be detected on a pig farm in the country. — Reuters

KYIV, May 26 —The appeal of Russian money is making some countries tolerant of its aggression, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said today as he rejected calls to accept territorial concessions to appease Moscow.

'Today we hear that allegedly Russia should be given what it wants, supposedly it is necessary to agree that some peoples may be deprived of some of their foreign policy rights,' Zelenskiy said in a video address to the Latvian parliament.

'We must fight for the principle that nation(hood) is important,' he said. — Reuters