A man is carried from an ambulance as he arrives at Bunia General Referral Hospital following confirmation of an Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo, on May 16, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Sunday (May 17, 2026) declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a “public health emergency of international concern”.
The WHO said the outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency.
The UN health agency said in a statement that 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases had been reported as of Saturday (May 16, 2026) in DRC’s Ituri province across at least three health zones, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu.
The DRC Health Ministry had said on Friday (May 15, 2026) that 80 people had died in the new outbreak in the eastern province.
In Uganda’s capital, Kampala, two apparently unrelated laboratory-confirmed cases, including one death, were reported on Friday (May 15, 2026) and Saturday (May 16, 2026), from people travelling from the DRC, the WHO said.
A laboratory-confirmed case was also reported in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, from a person returning from Ituri, the WHO said.
Published – May 17, 2026 07:10 am IST