Preliminary data indicate that about 10 to 30 lawmakers experienced similar symptoms, including high fever, weakness, gastrointestinal disorders and diarrhea.
Some sources told Ukrainska Pravda that the cause may have been food poisoning in the parliamentary cafeteria, although not all of those who fell ill had eaten there.
Other sources believe the symptoms more closely resemble a rotavirus infection, outbreaks of which have recently been recorded in several cities, including Kyiv and Bukovel.
At the same time, RBC-Ukraine, citing a source in parliament, reported that several dozen lawmakers had been poisoned but denied that it occurred in Bukovel.
“High fever, vomiting. It could be a virus, because not everyone ate in the cafeteria — some only had coffee or water. Maybe someone brought rotavirus from a kindergarten, not from Bukovel,” the source said.
Lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak said the Verkhovna Rada was unable to consider any items on Feb. 12 due to a lack of votes and ended the plenary session without results.
According to him, this was “partly true because of the poisoning of deputies,” likely from food in the cafeteria, as well as due to the absence of many lawmakers on business trips.
“It turns out we have not a parliamentary crisis, but a food crisis,” he wrote on Telegram.
As a result, no votes will take place until the start of the next plenary week on Feb. 24.