Over 900 suspected cases identified in Congo Ebola response: WHO chief

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is worsening rapidly, with conflict and mass displacement severely disrupting efforts to contain the deadly virus.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said more than 900 suspected Ebola cases have now been identified in the DRC, including 101 confirmed infections, as health authorities intensify surveillance and emergency response measures.

The outbreak is centred in Ituri province, a conflict-ridden region where nearly five million people live amid chronic violence and humanitarian instability.

According to Tedros, one in four people in Ituri currently requires humanitarian assistance, while one in five has been internally displaced due to ongoing fighting.

“The violence is forcing people to flee, including health and humanitarian workers. This is severely impeding efforts to scale up Ebola contact tracing and identify infections early enough to provide supportive care,” Tedros said in a post on X.

He added that insecurity, fear and mistrust within affected communities are further complicating efforts to track infections and prevent transmission.

Despite the deteriorating conditions, the WHO and partner organisations continue operating in some of the region’s most remote and dangerous areas, where communities are battling not only Ebola but also multiple other infectious diseases.

Tedros stressed that delivering broader healthcare support — beyond Ebola treatment alone — is essential to building trust among local populations and ensuring the success of containment efforts.

On 16 May, the WHO declared the Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus strain in the DRC and neighbouring Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

The agency later raised its national-level risk assessment for the DRC to “very high” on 22 May, while maintaining the regional risk at “high” and the global threat level at “low”.

Ebola is a severe and often fatal viral disease transmitted from infected wild animals — including fruit bats and primates — to humans, before spreading through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals or contaminated surfaces.

The disease has an average fatality rate of around 50 per cent, though past outbreaks have recorded mortality rates ranging from 25 to 90 per cent.

The current outbreak has revived memories of the devastating 2014–2016 West Africa Ebola epidemic, the deadliest since the virus was first identified in 1976, which spread across Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia and claimed thousands of lives.

With IANS inputs