WHO Raises DR Congo Ebola Risk to ‘Very High’ Amid Rapid Spread

The World Health Organization has upgraded the public health risk level of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from **high** to **very high** at the national level, as infections continue to spread across parts of the country.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the new risk assessment on Friday, May 22, warning that the outbreak had worsened significantly.

According to him, the risk is now considered **very high nationally**, **high regionally**, and **low globally**.

The WHO said the DRC currently has **82 confirmed Ebola cases**, including **seven confirmed deaths**. However, Tedros warned that the actual scale of the outbreak could be far greater, with nearly **750 suspected cases** and **177 suspected deaths** reported.

He added that the situation in neighbouring Uganda remained stable, despite two confirmed cases linked to travellers from the DRC, one of whom died.

The WHO chief also raised concern over insecurity and violence in affected areas, saying the unrest was disrupting efforts to contain the virus.

In Ituri province, the epicentre of the outbreak, rioters reportedly attacked Rwampara hospital and set fire to tents used for isolating Ebola patients.

The violence followed the death of a 24-year-old man believed to be the son of a soldier. Hospital officials said the man’s family demanded his body for burial, but health authorities refused because of strict Ebola burial protocols.

Ebola spreads through bodily fluids and close physical contact, making safe burial procedures critical in preventing further transmission.

Health officials said the outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment. As a result, authorities are relying on isolation, rapid contact tracing, and safe burial practices to control the spread.

Local civil society leader Jean Marie Ezadri warned that traditional mourning customs were increasing the risk of infection, as some residents continue to touch bodies, clothing, and personal belongings of the deceased during funeral gatherings.

Mistrust has also complicated the response, with some residents questioning whether Ebola is real. Several mourners protested the refusal of authorities to release bodies to families, while soldiers reportedly fired warning shots to disperse a crowd outside the hospital.

A nurse was also said to have been injured by stones thrown during the unrest.

Later, healthcare workers in protective suits transported three coffins to a cemetery under the protection of soldiers and police.

Some residents expressed pain and frustration over not being allowed to give their loved ones traditional farewells, while others rejected the Ebola diagnosis and appealed for more government support.

The outbreak has again drawn attention to weak healthcare infrastructure in rural parts of Ituri, where communities have long faced poor access to medical services and repeated attacks by armed groups.

Hospital officials in Mongbwalu said public awareness had improved in recent days, but warned that health facilities remained poorly equipped. They also raised concern that suspected Ebola patients were being kept close to other patients in hospital wards, increasing the risk of further transmission.