EBOLA DEATHS IN DR CONGO EXCEED 2,500 AS OUTBREAK SPREADS RAPIDLY

More than 2,500 people have died in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Ebola outbreak, according to Julien Harneis, the United Nations' senior Ebola coordinator. Harneis stated that over half of those deaths occurred within the previous 20 days. The outbreak is spreading across an area larger than France and is growing faster than any recorded Ebola outbreak, he told reporters in Geneva on Friday. The virus was declared on 15 May and is believed to have been circulating for several weeks before the official announcement.

The outbreak affects regions in the north and east of the Democratic Republic of Congo where state presence is limited, health infrastructure is sparse and armed groups have operated for decades. Harneis described the epidemic as spreading "widely" and said it represents the largest Ebola outbreak in the country's history. The virus has continued to accelerate despite ongoing response efforts, with transmission outpacing containment measures across affected areas.

Harneis called for rapid scaling up of resources and personnel deployed to remote areas in the east. He stated that increased staffing and resources could slow transmission within months and prevent the spread into neighbouring countries. Without such intervention, Harneis warned the epidemic would become more deadly and spread more widely, with the risk of crossing borders into adjacent nations. The UN coordinator emphasised that the current response capacity remains insufficient to match the speed and scale of the outbreak.