Safety fears limit Ebola response in Congo, with more than 12 attacks recorded
1 of 2 |
Health workers tend to an Ebola patient at the Rwampara Treatment Center in Ituri, Congo, Thursday, June 18, 2026. /Moses Sawasawa)
2 of 2 |
Rubble set on fire as health workers involved in Congo’s Ebola response go on strike as they protest over payment issues in Bunia, Congo, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. /Constant Same Bagalwa)
1 of 2 |
Health workers tend to an Ebola patient at the Rwampara Treatment Center in Ituri, Congo, Thursday, June 18, 2026. /Moses Sawasawa)
1 of 2
Health workers tend to an Ebola patient at the Rwampara Treatment Center in Ituri, Congo, Thursday, June 18, 2026. /Moses Sawasawa)
2 of 2 |
Rubble set on fire as health workers involved in Congo’s Ebola response go on strike as they protest over payment issues in Bunia, Congo, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. /Constant Same Bagalwa)
2 of 2
Rubble set on fire as health workers involved in Congo’s Ebola response go on strike as they protest over payment issues in Bunia, Congo, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. /Constant Same Bagalwa)
By
PROSPER HERI NGORORA and CONSTANT SAME BAGALWA
Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year]
Leer en español
BUNIA, Congo (AP) — At least a dozen attacks on health facilities and workers have been recorded during Congo’s Ebola outbreak as safety fears restrict the response in the worst-affected region, authorities said Saturday
Many health workers and other frontline workers in Ituri province have also gone on strike over unpaid salaries, further complicating response efforts in what’s been declared the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record. So far 2,181 cases have been recorded, including 864 deaths
The Bundibugyo virus responsible for this outbreak is less common than others that cause Ebola disease, and there is no approved vaccine or treatment
Many of the attacks have been carried out by angry mobs who have stormed treatment centers or targeted response teams in the field, Pierre Akilimali, incident manager for the Ebola response, said at a press briefing in Bunia, the capital of Ituri
The attacks are not limited to healthcare teams and affect frontline workers like burial teams operations manager for the Ebola response
“Members of the various response teams have been held captive in some health zones. Teams responsible for safe and dignified burials have been threatened and continue to be threatened in some cemeteries and within several communities,” Lufongola said at the briefing
Ebola spreads in the human population through contact with bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen, and with contaminated surfaces and materials. Traditional funerals in which loved ones wash and prepare bodies have been restricted, which has angered some residents
More health workers strike as Ebola cases in Congo exceed 2,000, including 754 deaths
2 MIN READ
Ebola is spreading faster in eastern Congo than it can be tracked, as deaths pass 700
2 MIN READ
Why the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history is becoming more challenging
3 MIN READ
In Ituri, which accounts for around 90% of all cases, health and aid workers have been seen leaving remote communities considered hot spots and heading to Bunia in recent days, locals told The Associated Press
U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric on Thursday told reporters that humanitarian actors are “deeply concerned by escalating violence” impacting the Ebola response and that access to treatment centers and surrounding communities remains constrained
“The worsening security situation has forced several humanitarian partners involved in the Ebola response to temporarily relocate staff to Bunia which is relatively safer,” he said
The most recent attack recorded was on Wednesday, when residents in the town of Nyakunde attacked a hospital and touched an Ebola treatment center nearby
Officials said treatment and care resumed on Thursday at the center after its occupants, including some patients, fled in the aftermath of the attack. Concerns, however, remained about risks of transmission amid the chaos
“I fear that the aid workers involved in combating this Ebola outbreak are going to leave the area. This risks making the task of eradicating the outbreak more difficult,” said Christophe Munyanderu, a civil society leader in Ituri’s Irumu territory
