France has confirmed its first cases of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in more than a decade – triggering urgent fears of new infectious disease in a continent still scarred by the Covid-19 pandemic. The two imported infections, reported between December 2 and 3 by France’s International Health Regulations National Focal Point, involved travellers who had visited the Arabian Peninsula in November.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), “All cases had been travellers exposed in the Arabian Peninsula and returning to France.” These mark France’s first MERS cases since 2013, bringing the country’s total to four laboratory-confirmed infections, including one death. Globally, the WHO reports that “Since the beginning of 2025 and as of December 21, 2025, a total of 19 cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), including four deaths have been reported to WHO globally.”

Of these, 17 occurred in Saudi Arabia across regions including Riyadh, Taif, Najran, Hail, and Hafr Al-Batin, with no epidemiological links identified between them. The arrival of the virus in Europe and North America this month highlights the persistent risk of international travel-related spread.

MERS-CoV, a coronavirus with a case fatality ratio of 37%, is far deadlier than SARS-CoV-2, though less transmissible between humans. Primarily spilling over from infected dromedary camels, it has caused hospital outbreaks, such as South Korea’s 2015 epidemic that killed 38. The WHO states: “These cases show that the virus continues to pose a threat in countries where it is circulating in dromedary camels, with regular spillover into the human population.”

In a Europe still reeling from Covid-19’s devastation – which exposed flaws in surveillance, border controls, and healthcare systems – these importations revive haunting memories of rapid viral spread. The French patients, both men in their 70s, were monitored closely as authorities moved to contain any potential outbreak.

French authorities responded promptly: “Contact tracing was initiated as soon as the first case was detected for the monitoring and surveillance of fellow travellers and co-exposed individuals, high-risk contacts, and hospital contacts.” This involved tracking the 34 members of the patients’ tour group. No secondary cases were identified by 19 December, and genomic sequencing confirmed the strain matches those circulating in the Arabian Peninsula.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) assesses the risk of sustained transmission as very low, but the WHO warns: “Due to the similarity of symptoms with other respiratory diseases that are widely circulating, like influenza or COVID-19, detection and diagnosis of MERS cases may be delayed, especially in unaffected countries, and provide an opportunity for onward human-to-human transmission to go undetected.”

Emphasising lessons from Covid, the WHO advises: “Strengthened surveillance with immediate notification of all suspected and confirmed cases,” alongside strict infection prevention in healthcare settings.

It advises avoiding raw camel products and maintaining a safe distance from camels, stating: “People with these underlying medical conditions should avoid close contact with animals, particularly dromedaries, when visiting farms, markets, or barn areas where the virus may be circulating.”

With no vaccine or specific treatment available, and global risk remaining “moderate”, this resilient virus’s arrival in Europe underscores the fragility of post-Covid recovery. As holiday travel surges, health officials are bolstering protocols to prevent another coronavirus crisis.