Myanmar faces rise in diarrhea as monsoon flooding continue to worsen in many parts of the country

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s largest city has registered a concerning rise in acute diarrhea cases, state media said Friday, adding to the hardships of a country grappling with severe flooding and civil war.

The state-run Myanma Alinn newspaper said 182 patients from Yangon were admitted to the city’s general hospital with diarrhea the past four days, including 93 who tested positive for diarrhea-causing pathogens.

The report did not specify the pathogens detected or whether the cases were confirmed as cholera.

The Myanmar news outlet Eleven Media, citing Aye Mya Thae Phyu, a lawmaker from Yangon’s Latha township, reported on Wednesday that the patients who tested positive had cholera.

The military’s information team told journalists Thursday that a 92-year-old patient died from the disease.

Aung Lin Aye, deputy medical superintendent at Yangon General Hospital, was quoted in Friday’s newspaper as saying that the number of diarrhea cases had increased significantly over the previous days and the hospital was providing treatment with a focus on preventing deaths.

Nanda Win, head of the Yangon Regional Department of Public Health, said cases were particularly concentrated in downtown Yangon’s Chinatown area, where street food vendors, restaurants and bars are clustered, according to the report.

He pointed to takeout food and contaminated water used by street vendors as possible sources of the illness, while noting that the number of cases had begun to decline.

Another state-run newspaper, Global New Light of Myanmar, said authorities asked street food vendors selling high-risk items to close for about three days to curb the spread.

Three bars and restaurants in Chinatown confirmed the three-day closure to The Associated Press.

Acute diarrhea is a recurring challenge for Yangon during the monsoon season. In 2024, more than 2,200 people were hospitalized with acute watery diarrhea in Yangon, with 15 deaths reported, according to World Health Organization data.

The latest development comes as flooding continues to affect communities elsewhere in the country, adding to the pressures on a population already struggling with years of conflict after the army seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021.

Pigeons gather at an entrance of Yangon general hospital, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026, in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw)

People gather at the entrance of emergency department of Yangon general hospital, Friday, Aug.14, 2026, in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw)

People gather at the entrance of Yangon general hospital Friday, Aug. 14, 2026, in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw)

MILAN (AP) — Italian authorities recovered three artworks by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse worth millions of euros that were stolen earlier this year from a private museum near the northern city of Parma, police said Friday.

A statement from the Italian Carabinieri’s art recovery squad said the artworks were discovered during searches ordered by prosecutors, but no details were given. The investigation is ongoing.

The three recovered artworks are “Fish,” a painting by Auguste Renoir, “Still Life with Cherries,” a pencil and watercolor by Paul Cézanne, and “Odalisque on the Terrace,” a color aquatint by Henri Matisse. Authorities said the Cézanne was valued at 6 million euros ($7 million), the Renoir at 3 million euros ($3.5 million), and the Matisse at 20,000 euros ($23,000).

The heist at the Magnani Rocca Foundation, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Parma, took place on the night of March 22-23, with thieves forcing open the entrance door, police said.

Local media reported that the thieves took the paintings in less than three minutes and escaped across the museum gardens.

Established in 1977, the foundation hosts the collection of art historian Luigi Magnani and includes works by Dürer, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya and Monet.

The museum believes a structured and organized gang was responsible for the theft, which the alarm interrupted, local media reported.

The crime followed a series of high-profile heists at major European museums, including the theft in October of French crown jewels and other items valued at 88 million euros ($101 million) from the Louvre in Paris.

In this picture made available by the Italian Carabinieri in Parma, northern Italy, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026, Carabinieri pose near three paintings recovered following a police operation: "Tasse et plat de cerises" by Paul Cezanne, left, "Odalisque Sur La Terrasse" by Henri Matisse, center, and "Les Poisson" by Pierre Auguste Renoir, right. (Italian Carabinieri via AP)