Mecd Mustafa

22 July 2026 • Updated: 22 July 2026

Addis Ababa / Anadolu

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on Tuesday called for urgent action to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, warning that the virus could become 'the worst outbreak ever documented in the world' if not quickly contained.

Jean Kaseya, the director general of the centers (a health agency of the African Union based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), said in a post on the American company's platform X: 'The Ebola outbreak is escalating at an alarming rate. We must act now. If we do not stop the virus today, this will become the worst outbreak ever documented in the world.'

He added: 'This is not a time for delay. All available resources must be mobilized, the response on the ground strengthened, and this outbreak stopped before more lives are lost.'

According to the latest update from the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 65 days after the outbreak was declared on May 15, the number of confirmed cases has reached 2,423, including 967 deaths.

The case fatality rate is 39.9 percent, while the contact tracing rate has reached 81.1 percent, according to the ministry.

The outbreak has affected five provinces: Haut-Uélé, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, and Tshopo.

Ituri remains the epicenter of the epidemic with ongoing transmission.