WHO offers new clues on cruise outbreak

GENEVA/AMSTERDAM — The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that it suspects rarely seen human-to-human transmission took place between close contacts on board a luxury cruise ship hit by seven confirmed or suspected hantavirus cases.

A Dutch couple and a German national have died, while a British national was evacuated from the ship and is in intensive care in South Africa, officials said. Three more passengers suspected to be infected are still on board, one of whom has a mild fever.