DR Congo Ebola outbreak 'far from being under control', poses 'high risk' of spread: WHO chief

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is escalating rapidly, posing a significant risk of spreading to neighboring countries, warns the World Health Organization (WHO) chief. According to Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, the epidemic is far from being under control, as it has already claimed over 2,300 lives out of nearly 5,000 cases, making it the deadliest outbreak in the country's history.

The outbreak, declared on May 15, is believed to have been spreading for weeks before the official declaration. It has particularly affected regions in the north and east, where the state's presence is weak, health infrastructure is lacking, and armed groups have been active. The virus, which spreads through contact with bodily fluids and causes hemorrhagic fever, is moving faster than any previous Ebola outbreak, with three months into the current epidemic resulting in seven times more cases and five times more deaths compared to the first three months of the largest Ebola outbreak in history, which occurred in West Africa from 2013 to 2016.

The WHO has declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and new recommendations will be issued to the DRC and other at-risk countries in the coming days. Currently, the public health risk level is assessed as very high in the DRC, high in Uganda and other bordering nations, and low for the rest of Africa and the world.

The main concern is that many people are dying at home, in their communities, outside treatment centers, and without being detected. Efforts are underway to ramp up and decentralize the response, protect motorcycle taxi drivers who transport patients, and integrate them into the surveillance system. However, it remains unclear when the WHO emergency committee will release its recommendations to curb the epidemic.