Zika virus and the Middle East

Following the recognition of the South American Zika virus epidemic, the Middle East was considered a region at high risk for its spread, being a hub of commercial traffic as well as tourism and pilgrimage. But relatively few Middle Eastern returning travelers have been documented with Zika infection, and local transmission of the virus did not eventuate in the region. However, the conjunction of increasing Aedes aegypti infestation with large, impoverished/displaced populations and inadequate public health infrastructure puts some countries of the Middle East at high risk.