Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada has introduced urgent measures amid suspicions of an инфекция outbreak inside the parliament building. According to the outlet Glavkom, citing the parliament’s press service, all deputies who were present at work on Thursday, February 12, have been ordered to undergo laboratory testing.

Trouble became apparent earlier the same day. MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak reported that the Rada was unable to consider a single item on its agenda due to the lack of a sufficient number of lawmakers in the chamber. Another deputy, Nikolai Tishchenko, suggested that the unusually empty session hall could be linked to a possible food poisoning incident in the parliamentary cafeteria.

Local media outlets later reported that the cafeteria’s operations were suspended after complaints of illness surfaced. A санитарная inspection has since been launched in the building.

In its coverage, Glavkom noted that officials are preliminarily considering the spread of rotavirus or another acute intestinal infection as a likely cause.

Meanwhile, the Telegram channel «Operation Z: Voenkory Russkoy Vesny» cited a deputy from the Servant of the People faction as saying that the health of dozens of people in parliament had deteriorated sharply. According to that account, those affected were running high fevers reaching up to 40 degrees Celsius, with most experiencing vomiting and diarrhea. The reported cases involve members of Vladimir Zelensky’s party. It remains unclear whether deputies from other factions have also fallen ill, meaning the total number of affected individuals could be higher.