WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak In DR Congo And Uganda Public Health Emergency

The World Health Organization declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda a “public health emergency of international concern” after more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths were reported.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the outbreak does not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency, while also warning neighbouring countries are at high risk of further spread.

Al Jazeera

The WHO said the outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD), a rare type of Ebola disease that has no approved therapeutics or vaccines, and it said the DRC accounts for all except two of the cases.

Officials first reported the spread of the virus in the DRC’s eastern province of Ituri on Friday, and on Saturday the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (ACDCP) reported 336 suspected cases and 87 deaths.

A laboratory later confirmed a case in the major DRC city of Goma, and Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, director of the Congolese National Institute for Biomedical Research (INRB), told AFP: “A positive case in Goma has been confirmed by tests carried out by the laboratory.”

CBS News said the WHO declared the emergency after officials identified more than 250 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths linked to the disease, and it reported that the emergency declaration listed eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths in Congo's eastern province of Ituri.

In Bunia, locals told Associated Press that they were afraid amid frequent burials, with Jean Marc Asimwe saying: “Every day, people are dying ... and this has been going on for about a week.”

Al Jazeera

The BBC reported that the WHO said there are now eight laboratory-confirmed cases, with other suspected cases and deaths across three health zones including Bunia, Mongwalu and Rwampara.

The BBC also said a laboratory confirmed an Ebola case in the eastern city of Goma, currently controlled by the M23 rebels, and it described the WHO’s warning that the outbreak could potentially be “a much larger outbreak” than what is currently being detected and reported.

In Kampala, Uganda, the BBC said Ugandan officials reported a 59-year-old man who died on Thursday had tested positive, and it said the patient’s body was returned to DR Congo.

The WHO advised immediate isolation of confirmed cases, allowing only restricted national travel and no international travel until 21 days after exposure, and it urged countries not to close their borders or restrict travel and trade.

The WHO also advised countries to activate their national disaster and emergency management mechanisms and undertake cross-border screening, and it said it would convene an Emergency Committee to advise on proposed temporary recommendations.

Africa CDC Director-General Dr Jean Kaseya told Sky News: “Currently, I’m on panic mode because people are dying. I don’t have medicines. I don’t have [a] vaccine to support countries.”

The Guardian reported that Kaseya warned “Western countries, they don’t understand that when Africa is affected, they are also at risk because people are flying every day,” and it said the outbreak pointed to the need for vaccine and medicine manufacturing capacity on the continent.

The WHO’s determination document said the event meets the criteria for a public health emergency of international concern because, as of 16 May 2026, eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths had been reported in Ituri Province, and it said there are “significant uncertainties to the true number of infected persons and geographic spread” associated with the event.