A nurse has been killed and another health worker seriously hurt after they were set upon while responding to an Ebola alert in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the World Health Organization said. The incident happened on Saturday in Bafwasende, a town in the eastern Tshopo province, according to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who posted about it on X on Sunday.
The attack is the latest in a string of assaults on health workers and responders, which officials say is slowing efforts to contain the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in the world. Local authorities have not yet commented on the attack or on the suspects.
WHO leaders call for protection of Ebola responders
Tedros said everyone working to shield communities from the disease must be able to do their jobs with dignity and safety, adding that healthcare must always be protected. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, also condemned the attack on X.
“Health is NOT a target,” Janabi said. “Those responding to the Ebola outbreak must be protected. Misinformation and fear must never fuel violence.”
Deadliest outbreak in Congo’s history fuels distrust
Data from the DRC’s Ministry of Health show more than 9,800 cases, including over 4,700 deaths, since the outbreak began in May. The ministry’s figures make it the deadliest Ebola outbreak in the country’s history.
Responders say the government’s handling of the crisis, combined with chronic corruption, has bred widespread distrust, and some people have even dismissed Ebola as a hoax. Scepticism has complicated work in remote areas and emerging hotspots that already face shortages of medical supplies and health workers. Last month, a politician who publicly backed the government’s response was beaten to death in North Kivu after urging the public, on a radio show, to follow measures such as social distancing and hand-washing.
In May, angry residents set fire to two tents at health centres in two separate attacks within a single week. Responders say some residents have held team members captive or threatened them in designated health zones.
Outbreak spreads across Africa as Uganda tightens entry rules
The outbreak has now been reported in four countries across eastern, central and western Africa, giving it the widest geographic spread of any Ebola outbreak on the continent to date. On Sunday, Uganda’s Minister of Health Chris Baryomunsi announced that all citizens returning with a history of travel to the DRC will be quarantined for 21 days.
Uganda declared an end to its latest outbreak in July, but health experts remain on alert after two people who had recently passed through the country later tested positive in Kenya and Nigeria. Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people. The Bundibugyo strain behind the current outbreak has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
According to the WHO, symptoms can take up to 21 days to appear. In an October 23 update, the agency urged stronger monitoring and cross-border cooperation, while advising against restrictions on travel or trade with affected countries.
