Reports that multiple world leaders became unwell after attending the 2026 BRICS Summit in New Delhi have sparked widespread speculation online, although Indian authorities have rejected claims that several leaders fell sick as a result of the gathering.
The speculation follows the confirmation that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was advised by his medical team to rest after returning from the BRICS Summit. His office said he had been booked off from public engagements due to ill health.
At the same time, unverified claims have circulated online alleging that Chinese President Xi Jinping experienced a serious medical episode during the summit and was subsequently taken to a hospital in Beijing.
Those claims have not been confirmed by Chinese or Indian authorities. Reports citing the allegations say they originated from social media posts by Wanjun Xie, chairman of the China Democracy Party. No official statement has confirmed that Xi suffered a stroke, lost consciousness or required emergency hospital treatment.
Xi attended the two-day summit in New Delhi, where he held meetings with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders. He did, however, miss the gala dinner hosted by Modi, with reports at the time attributing his absence to tiredness following travel and a busy schedule.
A video from the summit also fuelled online speculation after Modi briefly paused while speaking and appeared to check on Xi. Subsequent reporting indicated that Xi had been dealing with an issue involving his interpretation earpiece rather than a confirmed medical emergency.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs has now described social media reports claiming that multiple world leaders fell ill after the summit as “fake”, warning against what it called malicious posts.
The claims have nevertheless gained traction online because of the confirmed illness of Ramaphosa and the separate, unverified allegations concerning Xi.
The 18th BRICS Summit was held in New Delhi on September 12 and 13, bringing together leaders and representatives from the expanded BRICS grouping.
At present, Ramaphosa’s illness is officially confirmed, while the more serious claims concerning Xi remain unverified. There is no credible evidence establishing that multiple leaders became ill because they attended the BRICS Summit.
