Number of Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo surpasses 5,000

The number of Ebola virus cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo has surpassed 5,000, according to a health body affiliated with the African Union on Wednesday, as the conflict-ridden country experiences its largest outbreak of the virus in its history.

The current outbreak has claimed 2,378 lives out of 5,021 confirmed cases, according to the latest data published by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

The seventeenth Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo was declared on May 15, but the disease is believed to have begun spreading weeks earlier.

The epidemic has affected areas in the northern and eastern parts of the country, where state presence is weak, health infrastructure is virtually non-existent, and numerous armed groups have been active for decades.

A previous outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo between 2018 and 2020, considered so far the deadliest in the country’s history, killed 2,299 people out of 3,381 confirmed cases, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures based on Congolese data.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Tuesday that “the risk of continued international spread of the outbreak at both national and international levels remains high.”

The Ebola virus, which is transmitted through contact with bodily fluids and causes hemorrhagic fever, has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa over the past 50 years.

There are no approved vaccines or treatments for the rare strain known as “Bundibugyo,” which is responsible for the current outbreak, although clinical trials are ongoing.

The government’s response has faced criticism for being slow and poorly organized, amid a lack of trust among large segments of the population.

The Africa CDC stated, “We continue to face challenges, including citizens’ refusal to undergo testing, which hinders disease surveillance and control efforts.”