Conflict Fuels Escalating Ebola Crisis in DRC

Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned that escalating violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is worsening the Ebola outbreak and hindering humanitarian efforts to combat the disease.

‘Eastern DRC is now facing a devastating clash between disease and conflict,’ he wrote on X on Wednesday (27 May).

Tedros stated that the Ebola outbreak in Ituri Province is difficult to manage due to fighting and displacement blocking access to affected communities. The outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.

He warned that ongoing clashes are forcing exposed individuals into overcrowded camps, enabling wider transmission. ‘Stopping the spread of Ebola entirely depends on humanitarian access,’ Tedros said.

Attacks on healthcare facilities have made infection tracking and contact tracing ‘almost impossible,’ he added. The WHO chief said frontline health workers are operating under extreme danger as violence spreads across the region.

‘We cannot build community trust or isolate the sick while bombs are falling,’ Tedros wrote.

He urged all parties involved in the conflict to agree to an immediate ceasefire and allow ‘safe and sustained access’ for medical teams handling the outbreak. ‘We appeal for human survival to be prioritised above all else,’ he said.

Violence in eastern DRC involves several armed groups, including the M23 rebels and the Cooperative for the Development of Congo militia, and has displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians amid long-standing ethnic and regional tensions.

Previously, health authorities warned that the Ebola outbreak continues to spread across parts of Africa, with neighbouring countries also affected.

Ten countries, including Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Zambia, face a high risk of Ebola transmission, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

WHO also warned that while the global spread risk remains low, the situation is being closely monitored due to the number of cases, infections among healthcare workers, and outbreaks in urban areas.

The statement emphasised that anyone returning from DRC to Uganda must undergo 21 days of self-isolation under health officials’ supervision.

Amid the surge in Ebola cases in Congo, the US has banned entry for patients and established quarantine facilities in Kenya. The plan has drawn sharp criticism and been deemed unethical.