BERLIN (Reuters) -Measles cases in the European region doubled in 2024 to a more than 25-year-high, the World Health Organisation and UNICEF said on Thursday, as they urged action to restore vaccination levels that slumped after the COVID-19 pandemic.

There were 127,350 reported cases of measles, including 38 deaths, in Europe and Central Asia last year, marking the highest total in nearly 30 years, according to figures from UNICEF and the World He

The number of measles cases in the European region doubled last year to reach the highest level in 25 years, health officials say. A joint report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN children's fund, Unicef, said children under the age of five accounted for more than 40% of the cases reported in Europe and central Asia.