The head of the World Health Organization has called for an immediate ceasefire in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo to help combat the ongoing Ebola outbreak. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on social media that the region is experiencing a "catastrophic collision of disease and conflict," with the Ebola outbreak in Ituri province outpacing the response efforts.
Tedros announced on Monday that he will travel to the DRC this week. As of Sunday, WHO data indicated 900 suspected cases and 223 suspected Ebola deaths in the DRC, along with seven confirmed cases and one death in Uganda. The outbreak was confirmed on May 15 in Ituri, the country's northeastern province bordering South Sudan and Uganda.
Eastern DRC is home to numerous armed groups. Although the government maintains control over most of Ituri, insecurity had been escalating even before the outbreak. The UN humanitarian office reports that nearly 1 million people in the province have been displaced by conflict. The outbreak has now spread southward to rebel-held areas of North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, where the Rwandan-backed M23 group controls large territories.
Tedros emphasized that stopping Ebola transmission depends entirely on humanitarian access. Ongoing clashes are driving mass displacement, pushing exposed contacts into overcrowded camps, and severing critical containment corridors. Frontline workers are risking everything, while attacks on health facilities make tracking cases and their contacts nearly impossible. He urged all warring parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire to contain the outbreak.
The response is further complicated by the transient nature of many communities in Ituri, where goldmines attract migrant workers, and by international aid cuts. Philippe Guiton, DRC director of World Vision, noted that children face acute risks, as years of conflict have weakened community systems and acute malnutrition leaves young bodies too fragile to withstand the aggressive virus.
Attacks on health facilities have also hindered the response. People have demanded that authorities release Ebola victims' bodies for burial, which traditionally involves washing and touching the body. However, these bodies are highly contagious and have been key vectors for spreading the disease in previous outbreaks.
On Saturday and Sunday, people attacked a hospital in Mongbwalu, Ituri. Medical director Dr. Richard Lokodu reported that 18 Ebola patients fled on Saturday after "unidentified individuals" burned isolation tents. On Sunday, seven more patients fled, and a suspected Ebola patient died from hemorrhaging during the attempt.
In Uganda, all seven confirmed cases were reported in Kampala, including a driver who transported another case, a Congolese woman seeking medical care, a Congolese health worker, and two Ugandan health workers who cared for an Ebola patient.
