diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 0e2d8e548f7..7fea3355201 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -6,6 +6,13 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+### Fixed ###
+- Running a container which does not have its own mount namespace no longer
+  changes the propagation of host's `/` and of the parent mount of the
+  container rootfs (they were made private or slave). (#5537)
+- For a container which does not have its own mount namespace, the container
+  rootfs and all its mounts are now unmounted on container deletion. (#5538)
+
 ## [1.6.0-rc.1] - 2026-10-06
 
 > Lo bueno, si breve, dos veces bueno.
diff --git a/libcontainer/container_linux.go b/libcontainer/container_linux.go
index 5d97e9141d3..908593988dd 100644
--- a/libcontainer/container_linux.go
+++ b/libcontainer/container_linux.go
@@ -43,6 +43,9 @@ type Container struct {
 	state                containerState
 	created              time.Time
 	fifo                 *os.File
+	// Mount ID of container's rootfs mount created by runc in the host
+	// mount namespace (if the container does not have its own one).
+	rootfsMountID uint64
 }
 
 // State represents a running container's state
@@ -77,6 +80,11 @@ type State struct {
 	// Empty if the container does not have aindividual dedicated monitoring
 	// group.
 	IntelRdtMonPath string `json:"intel_rdt_mon_path,omitempty"`
+
+	// Mount ID of container's rootfs mount, created by runc in the host
+	// mount namespace (only set if the container does not have its own
+	// mount namespace). Used to unmount it once the container is destroyed.
+	RootfsMountID uint64 `json:"rootfs_mount_id,omitempty"`
 }
 
 // ID returns the container's unique ID
@@ -991,6 +999,7 @@ func (c *Container) currentState() *State {
 		IntelRdtMonPath:     intelRdtMonPath,
 		NamespacePaths:      make(map[configs.NamespaceType]string),
 		ExternalDescriptors: externalDescriptors,
+		RootfsMountID:       c.rootfsMountID,
 	}
 	if pid > 0 {
 		for _, ns := range c.config.Namespaces {
diff --git a/libcontainer/factory_linux.go b/libcontainer/factory_linux.go
index f1c223e9816..6a0c7576b09 100644
--- a/libcontainer/factory_linux.go
+++ b/libcontainer/factory_linux.go
@@ -139,6 +139,7 @@ func Load(root, id string) (*Container, error) {
 		intelRdtManager:      intelrdt.NewManager(&state.Config, id, state.IntelRdtPath),
 		stateDir:             stateDir,
 		created:              state.Created,
+		rootfsMountID:        state.RootfsMountID,
 	}
 	c.state = &loadedState{c: c}
 	if err := c.refreshState(); err != nil {
diff --git a/libcontainer/process_linux.go b/libcontainer/process_linux.go
index 740064da91e..b52d3c45303 100644
--- a/libcontainer/process_linux.go
+++ b/libcontainer/process_linux.go
@@ -1014,6 +1014,12 @@ func (p *initProcess) start() (retErr error) {
 				return err
 			}
 		case procHooks:
+			// At this point, the container rootfs is mounted. In case
+			// this is done in the host mount namespace, remember the
+			// mount, so it can be unmounted on container destroy.
+			if !p.config.Config.Namespaces.Contains(configs.NEWNS) {
+				p.container.rootfsMountID = mountID(p.config.Config.Rootfs)
+			}
 			// Setup cgroup before prestart hook, so that the prestart hook could apply cgroup permissions.
 			if err := p.manager.Set(p.config.Config.Cgroups.Resources); err != nil {
 				return fmt.Errorf("error setting cgroup config for procHooks process: %w", err)
diff --git a/libcontainer/rootfs_linux.go b/libcontainer/rootfs_linux.go
index 446fd8c5803..6f20a654ad8 100644
--- a/libcontainer/rootfs_linux.go
+++ b/libcontainer/rootfs_linux.go
@@ -1097,19 +1097,75 @@ func rootfsParentMountPropagation(path string, rootPropagation int) error {
 }
 
 func prepareRoot(config *configs.Config) error {
-	flag := unix.MS_SLAVE | unix.MS_REC
-	if config.RootPropagation != 0 {
-		flag = config.RootPropagation
+	hostMntns := !config.Namespaces.Contains(configs.NEWNS)
+	// In the host mount namespace, the propagation of existing mounts
+	// (except for the rootfs one, see below) must not be changed, as this
+	// would affect the host.
+	if !hostMntns {
+		flag := unix.MS_SLAVE | unix.MS_REC
+		if config.RootPropagation != 0 {
+			flag = config.RootPropagation
+		}
+		if err := mount("", "/", "", uintptr(flag), ""); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+
+		if err := rootfsParentMountPropagation(config.Rootfs, config.RootPropagation); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+	} else {
+		// If rootfs is a shared mount, the rootfs mount we create below
+		// is propagated to its peers. If any of these peers is the mount
+		// rootfs is mounted on (e.g. rootfs is bind mounted onto itself
+		// on a shared mount), the copy gets tucked under the rootfs mount,
+		// and unmounting our mount on destroy unmounts the rootfs mount,
+		// too. Make rootfs a slave to prevent that. EINVAL means rootfs
+		// is not a mount point, which is fine.
+		if err := mount("", config.Rootfs, "", unix.MS_SLAVE, ""); err != nil && !errors.Is(err, unix.EINVAL) {
+			return err
+		}
 	}
-	if err := mount("", "/", "", uintptr(flag), ""); err != nil {
+
+	if err := mount(config.Rootfs, config.Rootfs, "bind", unix.MS_BIND|unix.MS_REC, ""); err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
+	if hostMntns {
+		// Make the new rootfs mount a slave, so that container mounts
+		// do not propagate to the host (and other mount namespaces).
+		return mount("", config.Rootfs, "", unix.MS_SLAVE|unix.MS_REC, "")
+	}
+	return nil
+}
 
-	if err := rootfsParentMountPropagation(config.Rootfs, config.RootPropagation); err != nil {
-		return err
+// mountID returns the ID (as in /proc/self/mountinfo) of the mount the path
+// resides on, or 0 if it can not be obtained.
+func mountID(path string) uint64 {
+	var st unix.Statx_t
+	err := unix.Statx(unix.AT_FDCWD, path, unix.AT_SYMLINK_NOFOLLOW, unix.STATX_MNT_ID, &st)
+	if err != nil || st.Mask&unix.STATX_MNT_ID == 0 {
+		return 0
 	}
+	return st.Mnt_id
+}
 
-	return mount(config.Rootfs, config.Rootfs, "bind", unix.MS_BIND|unix.MS_REC, "")
+// unmountRootfs unmounts the container rootfs mount created by runc in the
+// host mount namespace (see prepareRoot), together with all the container
+// mounts under it. It is only done if the rootfs mount is still the one
+// created by runc, so that some other mount is never unmounted.
+func unmountRootfs(c *Container) {
+	if c.rootfsMountID == 0 {
+		return
+	}
+	rootfs := c.config.Rootfs
+	if mountID(rootfs) != c.rootfsMountID {
+		logrus.Debugf("not unmounting %s: mount ID mismatch", rootfs)
+		return
+	}
+	if err := unmount(rootfs, unix.MNT_DETACH); err != nil {
+		logrus.Warn(err)
+		return
+	}
+	c.rootfsMountID = 0
 }
 
 func setReadonly() error {
diff --git a/libcontainer/state_linux.go b/libcontainer/state_linux.go
index 1f758e2a301..9d6e20e174d 100644
--- a/libcontainer/state_linux.go
+++ b/libcontainer/state_linux.go
@@ -61,6 +61,7 @@ func destroy(c *Container) error {
 		return fmt.Errorf("unable to remove container state dir: %w", err)
 	}
 	c.initProcess = nil
+	unmountRootfs(c)
 	err := runPoststopHooks(c)
 	c.state = &stoppedState{c: c}
 	return err
diff --git a/tests/integration/host-mntns.bats b/tests/integration/host-mntns.bats
index f05c707e29d..4ba5ee52c3f 100644
--- a/tests/integration/host-mntns.bats
+++ b/tests/integration/host-mntns.bats
@@ -5,25 +5,38 @@ load helpers
 function setup() {
 	requires root
 	setup_busybox
+	update_config '	  .linux.namespaces -= [{"type": "mount"}]
+			| .linux.maskedPaths = []
+			| .linux.readonlyPaths = []
+			| .root.readonly = false'
 }
 
 function teardown() {
-	[ ! -v ROOT ] && return 0 # nothing to teardown
+	# Remove the rootfs mount made by a test.
+	if [ -v ROOT ] && mountpoint -q "$ROOT"/bundle/rootfs; then
+		umount -R --lazy "$ROOT"/bundle/rootfs
+	fi
+	teardown_bundle
+}
 
-	# XXX runc does not unmount a container which
-	# shares mount namespace with the host.
-	umount -R --lazy "$ROOT"/bundle/rootfs
+# This test goes first, since without the fix, any test which runs
+# a container in the host mount namespace changes the host mounts
+# propagation, so the bug would go unnoticed.
+@test "runc run [host mount ns] must not change host mounts propagation" {
+	update_config '.process.args = ["true"]'
 
-	teardown_bundle
+	# Check / and the mount the container bundle resides on.
+	before=$(findmnt -n -o TARGET,PROPAGATION / && findmnt -n -o TARGET,PROPAGATION -T "$ROOT/bundle")
+	run -0 runc run test_host_mntns
+	after=$(findmnt -n -o TARGET,PROPAGATION / && findmnt -n -o TARGET,PROPAGATION -T "$ROOT/bundle")
+	echo "before: $before"
+	echo "after: $after"
+	[ "$before" = "$after" ]
 }
 
 @test "runc run [host mount ns + hooks]" {
 	update_config '	  .process.args = ["/bin/echo", "Hello World"]
-			| .hooks |= . + {"createRuntime": [{"path": "/bin/sh", "args": ["/bin/sh", "-c", "touch createRuntimeHook.$$"]}]}
-			| .linux.namespaces -= [{"type": "mount"}]
-			| .linux.maskedPaths = []
-			| .linux.readonlyPaths = []
-			| .root.readonly = false'
+			| .hooks |= . + {"createRuntime": [{"path": "/bin/sh", "args": ["/bin/sh", "-c", "touch createRuntimeHook.$$"]}]}'
 	run -0 runc run test_host_mntns
 	run -0 runc delete -f test_host_mntns
 
@@ -31,3 +44,41 @@ function teardown() {
 	run -0 ls createRuntimeHook.*
 	[ "$(echo "$output" | wc -w)" -eq 1 ]
 }
+
+# https://github.com/opencontainers/runc/issues/2095
+@test "runc delete [host mount ns] unmounts container mounts" {
+	run -0 runc run -d --console-socket "$CONSOLE_SOCKET" test_host_mntns
+	testcontainer test_host_mntns running
+
+	# Container rootfs and its mounts are visible on the host.
+	mountpoint -q rootfs
+	mountpoint -q rootfs/proc
+
+	run -0 runc delete -f test_host_mntns
+	run ! mountpoint -q rootfs/proc
+	run ! mountpoint -q rootfs
+}
+
+@test "runc run [host mount ns] unmounts container mounts on failure" {
+	update_config '.hooks |= . + {"createRuntime": [{"path": "/bin/false"}]}'
+
+	run ! runc run test_host_mntns
+	run ! mountpoint -q rootfs/proc
+	run ! mountpoint -q rootfs
+}
+
+@test "runc delete [host mount ns] keeps rootfs mounted by user" {
+	# The rootfs is a mount point before the container is created
+	# (and, if the bundle resides on a shared mount, it is a peer
+	# of that mount).
+	mount --bind rootfs rootfs
+
+	run -0 runc run -d --console-socket "$CONSOLE_SOCKET" test_host_mntns
+	testcontainer test_host_mntns running
+	mountpoint -q rootfs/proc
+
+	run -0 runc delete -f test_host_mntns
+	run ! mountpoint -q rootfs/proc
+	# The user mount must be kept intact.
+	mountpoint -q rootfs
+}