MANILA - The Philippines has reported two new cases of mpox, raising the number of active cases in the country to three this year, the Health Ministry said Monday. The new cases include two men in their mid-30s, one of whom is from the capital Manila, local broadcaster ABS-CBN News reported. “Both have MPXV Clade II, which is the milder form of the mpox virus,” Albert Domingo, a spokesperson for the Department of Health said. The Philippines reported its first mpox case of this year last week. The country has recorded 12 mpox cases since July 2022. The WHO has declared the mpox situation a “public health emergency of international concern.” Since the beginning of 2024, over a dozen African countries have reported the disease, with the Democratic Republic of Congo accounting for more than 90% of reported cases. The variant of mpox is believed to be both more contagious and more deadly than the “clade 2” variant, which was responsible for the global outbreak that began in 2022. Formerly known as monkeypox, mpox is a viral disease that can spread through close contact and contaminated materials like sheets, clothing and needles, according to WHO.