GENEVA, 17 May. - (ANA) - The World Health Organization declared the Ebola disease outbreak caused by a rare virus in the Democatic Republic  (DR) of Congo and neighboring Uganda a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday, after more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths.

 

WHO said the outbreak doesn’t meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency like COVID-19, and advised against the closure of international borders.

 

WHO said on X that a laboratory-confirmed case has also been reported in Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, which is about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the outbreak’s epicenter in the eastern province of Ituri, suggesting a possible wider spread. It said the patient had visited Ituri and that other suspected cases have also been reported in North Kivu province, which is one of Congo’s most populous and borders Ituri.

 

On Sunday, the rebel government of Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city, said in a statement that the first confirmed case of Ebola was detected in the city. The infected person traveled from Ituri province and was currently under isolation, the statement said. Goma was the site of a rapid rebel offensive in early 2025, and the conflict between the Congolese armed forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel paramilitary group has displaced hundreds of thousands.  - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/17 May 2026 - - -