The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed a new Ebola outbreak in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, reporting 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths in the conflict-affected Ituri Province, where weak infrastructure and ongoing insecurity are complicating early containment efforts.
In a statement released Friday, the agency said infections have been largely concentrated in the Mongwalu and Rwampara health zones, both in mining and transit corridors where population movement is frequent and health access is limited. Additional suspected cases have been reported in Bunia, the provincial capital, with laboratory confirmation still pending.
Health officials said four of the recorded deaths have been confirmed among laboratory-positive cases, while investigations continue to determine the full scale of transmission and possible links between clusters across affected zones.
Early laboratory analysis conducted by the DRC’s national biomedical research institute has detected Ebola virus in multiple samples. Preliminary findings suggest a non-Zaire strain of the virus, though full genomic sequencing is still underway with support from Africa CDC. The result is critical for response planning, as different Ebola species can respond differently to available vaccines and therapeutics.
