This article was compiled by Al Jazeera staff, AFP and Reuters.

The current outbreak, now in its 17th occurrence in the DRC, is concentrated in the conflict-affected Ituri province.

Published On 16 Jul 202616 Jul 2026

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that Ebola is spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo more quickly than in any previous outbreak.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated on Thursday that the 2018–2020 Ebola outbreak in the DRC required over ten months to reach 2,000 confirmed infections, whereas the current outbreak has surpassed that figure in just two months, resulting in 796 fatalities.

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Tedros noted that this outbreak is now the third largest on record and has been spreading more rapidly in the past month than any previous outbreak.

The DRC reported 62 new cases on Thursday, increasing its total number of confirmed infections to 2,073, though the ⁠⁠WHO has said the ⁠⁠true tally could be at least double that.

The DRC’s 17th Ebola outbreak was declared on May 15 after several deaths in Ituri, the mineral-rich northeastern province patrolled by several armed groups.

Cases of Ebola, which spreads through close contact and infected bodily fluids, have so far been found in five DRC provinces and neighbouring Uganda, though the vast majority are in Ituri.

The WHO chief highlighted that over 80 percent of new cases were being detected “outside known contact lists, showing that transmission chains are still being missed”.

He added that 377 people have recovered from Ebola in the DRC, “showing that with early diagnosis and safe care, this disease can be survived and stopped”.

To compound problems in Ituri, healthcare workers began a strike and blocked the entrance to Bunia General Hospital on Wednesday. Staff said they had not received any compensation for their work since the outbreak began, despite working under extremely difficult conditions.

In Uganda, things were looking up as its last remaining Ebola patient was discharged on Thursday, starting a 42-day countdown after which it can ⁠⁠be declared Ebola-free, said the East African nation’s health ministry.

Uganda had 20 cases of the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola since mid-May. Fifteen were people infected in the DRC who then travelled to Uganda.

Unlike the surging number of infections in DRC, Uganda has not reported a new case since June 22 .

“Today, Uganda has discharged the last Ebola patient, a Congolese national who has successfully recovered and [is] ⁠⁠ready to be with his family,” Uganda’s health ministry posted on X.

“Uganda starts ‌‌counting down. If 42 days pass without a single new case, WHO guidelines stipulate ‌‌that we will be declared Ebola-free.”

The high proportion of new cases outside known contact lists indicates undetected transmission chains. While the outbreak is accelerating in the DRC, neighboring Uganda appears close to containing its own cases, underscoring the importance of cross-border surveillance. Effective early diagnosis and safe care have been shown to improve survival rates, as evidenced by the 377 recoveries reported.