The World Health Organization has raised fresh alarm over the worsening Ebola outbreak in Central Africa, warning that the disease is spreading rapidly across eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda as health officials struggle to contain rising infections.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told delegates attending the World Health Assembly in Geneva that the organization was “deeply concerned” about both the speed and scale of the outbreak, which has intensified in recent weeks despite growing international response efforts.
According to the latest figures released by health authorities, at least 516 suspected Ebola cases have now been identified in Congo, including 33 laboratory-confirmed infections. Authorities have also linked at least 131 deaths to the outbreak. Neighboring Uganda has confirmed two additional cases, increasing fears that the virus could spread further across East and Central Africa.
Tedros warned that the numbers remain fluid because surveillance systems are still expanding in several affected regions, meaning additional infections are likely to be identified in the coming days.
“The numbers will change as field operations are scaling up, including strengthening surveillance, contact tracing and laboratory testing,” Tedros said during the assembly.
His remarks reflected growing concern among global health officials that the outbreak may already be larger than initially understood, especially in conflict-affected areas where healthcare access and disease monitoring remain limited.
The WHO chief announced that an Emergency Committee meeting had been scheduled for Tuesday to evaluate the outbreak and provide technical recommendations regarding the international response.
Such committees are composed of global public health experts who advise the WHO on major health emergencies and help determine whether additional international measures are necessary to prevent wider spread.
The current outbreak has generated serious concern because of several high-risk factors that complicate containment efforts. Health officials say infections have already appeared in densely populated urban areas, including Goma in eastern Congo and Kampala in Uganda, raising fears of accelerated transmission through major transportation and trade routes.
The involvement of urban centers represents a major escalation risk because Ebola outbreaks are historically easier to contain in isolated rural communities than in crowded cities with large mobile populations.
Goma, a city near Congo’s border with Rwanda, is considered particularly vulnerable because it serves as a major commercial hub with extensive regional travel connections. Public health experts warn that any sustained transmission there could significantly increase the risk of cross-border spread throughout East Africa.
WHO officials also expressed concern that several healthcare workers have contracted the virus, indicating ongoing transmission inside clinics and medical facilities.
Healthcare-associated infections are especially dangerous during Ebola outbreaks because they can rapidly overwhelm fragile medical systems while simultaneously discouraging people from seeking treatment.
Doctors, nurses and frontline emergency responders are often among the most exposed groups during Ebola crises due to close contact with infected patients and contaminated bodily fluids.
Tedros said the WHO had approved $3.9 million in emergency funding to help national authorities strengthen response operations and expand disease containment measures.
The funding will support testing programs, contact tracing operations, protective equipment distribution, laboratory expansion and emergency medical coordination across affected regions.
International health agencies are also accelerating shipments of protective gear and medical supplies into eastern Congo as officials race to prevent the outbreak from escalating further.
WHO representatives in Congo confirmed earlier this week that additional tons of protective equipment, laboratory materials and medical supplies were being delivered to Ituri province, one of the outbreak’s epicenters.
The outbreak has emerged in a particularly difficult environment because eastern Congo continues to face instability caused by armed groups, displacement crises and weak healthcare infrastructure.
Public health teams operating in conflict-affected areas often face serious logistical obstacles, including limited transportation access, insecurity and mistrust among local populations.
These conditions have complicated previous Ebola responses in the region and remain one of the greatest challenges confronting health officials today.
Experts say the outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a relatively rare form of the virus that currently lacks an approved targeted vaccine or specialized treatment.
That distinction is significant because vaccines developed during previous outbreaks primarily targeted the more common Zaire strain of Ebola, which caused several major epidemics in Central and West Africa.
The absence of a dedicated vaccine for the Bundibugyo variant means health officials must rely heavily on traditional outbreak control measures such as rapid isolation, contact tracing, sanitation protocols and public awareness campaigns.
Medical specialists say Ebola symptoms often begin with fever, fatigue, muscle pain and headaches before progressing into vomiting, diarrhea and internal bleeding in severe cases.
Because early symptoms resemble those of malaria and other tropical diseases common across the region, early detection remains difficult.
The virus spreads through direct contact with infected bodily fluids or contaminated materials, making hospitals, funerals and caregiving environments particularly high-risk settings.
Authorities are now urgently tracking people who may have been exposed to confirmed patients. Contact tracing teams monitor individuals during the virus’s incubation period, which ranges from two to 21 days.
Anyone showing symptoms is immediately isolated and tested to reduce the risk of wider community transmission.
Public health experts warn that the outbreak’s true scale may still be underestimated due to gaps in surveillance capacity and delayed reporting from remote areas.
In some communities, fear and misinformation have also complicated efforts to identify cases and encourage cooperation with health teams.
During previous Ebola outbreaks, distrust toward authorities sometimes caused residents to hide sick relatives or avoid treatment centers, accelerating the spread of the disease.
WHO officials say strengthening public communication is therefore becoming a critical part of the response strategy.
Religious leaders, local officials and community volunteers are being mobilized to educate residents about Ebola symptoms, prevention measures and the importance of reporting suspected infections quickly.
The outbreak has also reignited debate about the global health system’s preparedness following major structural changes to international humanitarian coordination.
Several health experts have warned that reductions in international aid programs and shifts in global health funding could weaken outbreak response capabilities in vulnerable regions.
The United States’ withdrawal from the WHO earlier this year and cuts to several international health initiatives have raised questions about how quickly large-scale outbreaks can now be addressed.
Some former public health officials argue that weakened surveillance networks may have delayed the early detection of the current outbreak.
Despite those concerns, WHO leaders insist international cooperation remains active and that response efforts are intensifying rapidly.
The organization says emergency teams are now scaling up laboratory testing, mobile response operations and cross-border coordination between affected countries.
Neighboring governments have also increased border screening and health monitoring procedures in an effort to identify potential infections before they spread further.
Ebola remains one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases. Fatality rates vary depending on the strain and the speed of medical intervention, but some outbreaks have killed more than half of those infected.
The virus was first identified in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, numerous outbreaks have erupted across sub-Saharan Africa, with Congo experiencing some of the most severe epidemics in modern history.
The largest Ebola epidemic occurred between 2014 and 2016 in West Africa, infecting more than 28,000 people and killing over 11,000 across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
That crisis exposed major weaknesses in global emergency preparedness and led to sweeping reforms in international outbreak coordination.
Health officials say lessons learned from those earlier outbreaks are now guiding the response in Congo and Uganda, though they acknowledge the current situation remains highly volatile.
For now, epidemiologists are focused on determining whether aggressive containment measures can slow transmission before the outbreak reaches additional urban centers or expands into more neighboring countries.
Tedros stressed that rapid intervention remains essential to preventing a broader regional crisis.
Global health officials say the coming days will be crucial as surveillance systems expand, laboratory testing accelerates and emergency response teams attempt to gain a clearer picture of how far the virus has already spread across the region.
