Global Health Alert Issued Over Deadly Ebola Outbreak in Central Africa

The World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern over an Ebola outbreak spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda, following more than 300 suspected infections and at least 88 deaths.

The decision was announced on Sunday, with WHO clarifying that while the situation is severe, it does not meet the threshold of a pandemic-level emergency such as COVID-19. The agency also advised against imposing international border closures, stressing that coordinated international support remains the preferred response.

WHO also reported on X that a laboratory-confirmed case had been identified in Kinshasa, the Congolese capital located roughly 1,000 kilometers from the outbreak’s epicenter in Ituri province. The patient had recently traveled from Ituri, raising concerns that the virus may be spreading beyond the initially identified zone. Additional suspected cases have also been recorded in North Kivu, a densely populated province bordering Ituri.

In eastern Congo, authorities in Goma confirmed the first detected case in the city on Sunday, saying the patient had arrived from Ituri and was currently isolated. Goma, which saw major fighting during a rebel advance in early 2025, remains affected by ongoing instability linked to clashes between government forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group, which has displaced large numbers of people.

Ebola is a rare but highly dangerous disease transmitted through direct contact with bodily fluids such as blood, vomit, or semen, and is often fatal. The current outbreak is being treated as a rare variant of the virus, prompting the emergency declaration intended to mobilize international funding, coordination, and medical response efforts.

WHO stated that a team of 35 specialists from the organization and Congo’s health ministry has already been deployed to Bunia in Ituri province, bringing around seven tons of emergency medical supplies. The agency said the goal is to strengthen containment and improve contact tracing in affected areas.

The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a rare variant for which no approved vaccine or specific treatment currently exists. It has been recorded only a few times previously, including an outbreak in Uganda in 2007–2008 that infected 149 people and caused 37 deaths, and another in Congo in 2012 with 57 cases and 29 fatalities.

Congolese health officials acknowledged that the country has faced multiple Ebola outbreaks before, often without targeted treatments. One official noted that survival is still possible even in untreated outbreaks, depending on response and circumstances.

However, containment efforts are being complicated by ongoing conflict and population movement in eastern Congo. The Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention said active transmission remains significant in areas such as Mongwalu, making contact tracing and containment more difficult. Mining-related mobility and cross-border movement into Uganda have further increased the risk of wider spread.

Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya warned that uncertainties remain about the full scale of the outbreak and its transmission chains. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also said the true extent of infections may be larger than reported, noting gaps in epidemiological tracking and confirmed links between cases.

Uganda has also reported infections linked to travel from Congo, including a patient who died in Kampala and another confirmed case with similar exposure history. WHO warned that the combination of positive test rates, geographic spread, and clustered fatalities suggests a potentially larger outbreak than currently documented.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the risk to Americans remains low but confirmed it is coordinating with partners in Africa and has staff on the ground in Congo. The agency has issued travel guidance advising against contact with symptomatic individuals and is implementing screening measures at ports of entry.

Officials also said the outbreak likely began in April, with early cases going undetected for weeks. The first suspected case, a 59-year-old man, developed symptoms on April 24 and died shortly after. By the time authorities were formally alerted in early May, dozens of deaths had already occurred.

Health officials also reported that at least four healthcare workers have died in the outbreak so far, underscoring the continued risks faced by medical staff responding to Ebola in resource-limited and conflict-affected regions.