Ebola outbreak in DR Congo becomes deadliest in country’s history

What the report says

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has become the country’s deadliest on record, according to Al Jazeera’s report citing the DRC National Public Health Institute. Authorities said the death toll had reached 2,325, overtaking the previous high from the 2018-2020 outbreak. The number of confirmed infections rose to 4,945, including 101 new cases reported in the latest 24-hour period.

The article says the outbreak, the DRC’s 17th, has also become the largest in the country by case count and continues to spread rapidly. United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned that the response needs greater speed, scale and solidarity, while WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the outbreak could surpass the scale of the West African epidemic of 2014-2016 if the current pace continues.

Al Jazeera reports that the current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments. Health workers are facing difficulties linked to weak medical infrastructure, remote terrain and conflict near the borders with South Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda. Those challenges, the report says, have made case detection and treatment slower and have contributed to a high fatality rate.

The report adds that international health agencies are evaluating experimental vaccines and therapies, but evidence remains limited. The situation underscores why faster surveillance, contact tracing and treatment capacity matter in the DRC and beyond, especially as the outbreak continues to intensify.