Measles killed more than 140,000 amid stagnating vaccine rates

More than 140,000 people died from measles worldwide in 2018, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and US authorities said on Thursday, the result of global vaccination rates that have stagnated for almost a decade.

Poorer countries were hardest hit, with the vast majority of measles cases and deaths in sub-Saharan Africa.

Wealthier countries however have also been battling their own outbreaks, with four European nations losing their "eliminated" status in 2018.

The announcement came as the Pacific island nation of Samoa was locked down in order to carry out a mass vaccination drive to cope with an epidemic that has killed 62 and, according to UN officials, was fuelled by anti-vaxxer conspiracy theories on the internet.

"The fact that any child dies from a vaccine-preventable disease like measles is frankly an outrage and a collective failure to protect the world's most vulnerable children," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreysus, director-general of the World Health Organisation.

"To save lives, we must ensure everyone can benefit from vaccines - which means investing in immunization and quality health care as a right for all."