WHO sounds alarm over Ebola surge in war-torn eastern Congo

The UN World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is facing a “catastrophic collision of disease and conflict” as a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak outpaces containment efforts in a region already affected by armed violence, mass displacement and acute food insecurity.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Ituri province is spreading in conditions where insecurity, attacks on health facilities and population movements are severely undermining response efforts, UN News reports.

He said these conditions are making it “nearly impossible” to trace contacts and isolate cases.

“We cannot build community trust or isolate the sick while bombs are falling,” he said.

The Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, first identified in Uganda in 2007, has no approved vaccine or treatment.

According to WHO and partner health agencies, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has reported nearly 1,000 suspected Ebola cases and more than 220 suspected deaths, although only one fatality has been laboratory confirmed.

In neighboring Uganda, health authorities have reported seven confirmed cases linked to the outbreak, including two healthcare workers and one confirmed death.

The WHO warned that the outbreak is continuing to spread geographically, with evidence of ongoing cross-border transmission.

The outbreak remains centered in Ituri province but has now spread across 11 health zones, including cases reported in North Kivu — in cities such as Butembo and Goma — as well as in South Kivu, according to the UN Children’s Fund UNICEF.

Health officials say the virus is spreading through family clusters and health facilities, with infections linked to caregiving, family gatherings, and unsafe burial practices.

By Vafa Guliyeva