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The World Health Organization today declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) for the Ebola epidemic affecting the Democratic Republic of Congo, following the confirmation of a first case in the city of Goma. According to the latest balance sheet from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 88 deaths probably linked to the virus have been recorded out of 336 suspected cases. A 59-year-old Congolese man also died in neighboring Uganda.
The Bundibugyo strain: no vaccine available
The current epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, for which there are no vaccines or specific treatments. This variant has a high fatality rate and had previously caused only two documented epidemics: in Uganda in 2007 and in the DRC in 2012. “The current epidemic constitutes a public health emergency of international concern, but does not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Outbreak in Ituri, border with Rwanda partially closed
The outbreak is located in the province of Ituri, in the north-east of the country, on the border with Uganda and South Sudan. It is a gold-bearing region characterized by intense population movements and serious security problems due to the presence of armed groups. The first confirmed case in Goma concerns the wife of a man who died of Ebola in Bunia. The woman had traveled to Goma after her husband’s death and tested positive in laboratory tests, according to Jean-Jacques Muyembe.
Health authorities fear that other family members present in Goma may also have been infected after having had contact with the body. Following the spread of the virus, the border between the DRC and Rwanda was partially closed: according to official Rwandan sources, only citizens of the two countries can now cross the border to return to their respective territories. Uganda has also announced the postponement of the annual Martyrs’ Day pilgrimage, scheduled for June 3 and capable of attracting thousands of faithful, many of whom come from eastern Congo.
Seventeenth epidemic: the most serious caused 2,300 victims
The east of the DRC is marked by over thirty years of armed conflict. The violence intensified in early 2025 with the advance of the Rwanda-backed March 23 Movement, which captured the cities of Goma and Bukavu. This is the seventeenth Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo since the virus was identified in 1976 in Zaire, the country’s former name. The most serious epidemic, between 2018 and 2020, caused almost 2,300 deaths out of approximately 3,500 cases.