DHAKA: Bangladesh has requested the World Health Organization (WHO) to conduct an inquiry into the worsening measles outbreak that has killed over 500 children since March.

Officials said the outbreak has resulted in 512 deaths so far, including 13 deaths reported in a single 24-hour period ending Saturday morning. Health authorities also confirmed 86 laboratory-confirmed infections, while the remaining deaths were linked to measles-like symptoms.

More than 62,000 children have been hospitalized nationwide with suspected measles since the outbreak began, highlighting the scale of the public health crisis.

The request for an international inquiry follows warnings from UNICEF, which had previously alerted authorities about the potential for the outbreak to worsen.