WHO Calls for Ceasefire to Stop 'Catastrophic' Ebola in DR Congo

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for a ceasefire: "A ceasefire, even a temporary one, would save lives. I urge you, I implore you: give us the space to help the people who need it most."

\WHO had earlier warned that eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo faces a "catastrophic collision of disease and conflict" as a fast-spreading Ebola outbreak outpaces containment efforts in a region already battered by armed violence, mass displacement and acute hunger.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Ituri province was spreading in an environment where insecurity, attacks on health facilities and population movements were making it "nearly impossible" to trace contacts and isolate cases. DR Congo has reported nearly 1,000 suspected Ebola cases and more than 220 suspected deaths.

In neighbouring Uganda, health authorities have reported seven confirmed cases linked to the outbreak, including two healthcare workers and one confirmed death. WHO said the outbreak is continuing to spread geographically, with evidence of ongoing cross-border transmission.