Ebola outbreak kills more than 5,300 people in DR Congo

What the report says

An Ebola outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has now killed more than 5,300 people, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, as reported by Al Jazeera on 3 November 2026. The DRC remains the epicenter of the outbreak after declaring its 17th, and largest, Ebola outbreak in mid-May. Health officials say most of the deaths have occurred in the DRC, with additional fatalities reported in Kenya and Uganda.

The current outbreak is tied to the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, which Africa CDC data said has infected more than 10,000 people across the DRC, Uganda and Kenya. The article said the strain has crossed borders several times in recent months, highlighting the difficulty of containing transmission in the region. Uganda previously reported cases linked to travel from the DRC before later being declared Ebola-free in August.

Al Jazeera also reported that Kenya recorded its first known Ebola cases in October, while Nigerian authorities said two suspected cases tested negative. A separate imported case was reported in France in July involving a health worker who had returned from the DRC. The article noted that there are no approved treatments or vaccines for the Bundibugyo strain, although clinical trials have recently begun with the Ervebo vaccine, which is used against the more common Zaire strain.