Dawn.com has been reporting from different parts of the Swabi district of Pakistan, that a large number of children have suffered from smallpox, but the authorities concerned have failed to take any action to prevent this disease or immunize the people against it.

The residents of Naro Banda, a rural area in the district, told a Dawn correspondent that a majority of the children in the village had suffered from smallpox a few years back. "My two brothers, Shams and Akhtar, have been afflicted by smallpox and I have appealed to the officials concerned, but they did not bother either to visit the area or take steps for controlling it," said Mukhtaj Ahmad of Naro Banda.

Back in October, at least 75 people were infected with the Ebola virus. Eight died before the story disappeared from the wires. The actual extent of the problem is currently unknown. An isolation ward screened off by barbed wire had been set up in the Pakistani city of Quetta, and an international appeal was launched for help. No further information could be found about any response to that appeal.

In May 1980, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the global eradication of smallpox and recommended that all countries cease vaccination. Currently, there is no evidence of smallpox transmission anywhere in the world. WHO amended the International Health Regulations on January 1, 1982, deleting smallpox from the diseases subject to the regulations.

Well, it's back, and the latest two outbreaks were not listed on the Center for Disease Control (CDC) web site. So, as far as we know, this outbreak is just…out there.

It was also noticed that most of the parents of the sick children were uneducated. With few or no modern medical facilities or medications available, local 'quacks" or self-styled homeopathic 'doctors' provide what care they can, but no visible improvement in the children's health has been reported.

If the district health department has delayed taking steps for containing the disease, the epidemic may spread to other areas in the vicinity, or the whole of the district, for that matter.

There is speculation that the U.S. or Russian government may have knowledge of the outbreak(s), but sending western medical experts into this area of the world is a moot point. White folks are known to get kidnapped, blown up, and their heads cut off when venturing into the area.

The Sierra Times first covered this matter in the article "Smallpox: Jumping Ahead to the Next Possible Threat." Information on symptoms and treatment can be found there. Click here for the WHO information currently available.