As of August 1, a total of 3,748 confirmed cases had been recorded, including 1,657 deaths, according to WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic. The crude case fatality rate stands at 44 percent. During the most recent complete reporting week, the outbreak reached its highest weekly total with 567 new cases and 296 deaths, underscoring the exceptional pace of transmission.
The outbreak, caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, was declared on 15 May 2026 and has now surpassed the previous largest outbreak between 2018 and 2020, which had nearly 3,500 recorded cases.
A Perfect Storm: Conflict, Displacement and an Untreatable Strain
The outbreak is centred in Ituri province but has spread to North and South Kivu, where ongoing conflict between armed groups is complicating response efforts. More than 80 percent of new cases in Ituri, the epicentre, lack identified links to known contacts, making it extremely difficult to track and contain the virus. More than 60 percent of deaths are occurring within communities rather than at Ebola treatment centres, meaning people are dying without ever reaching care.
The outbreak has been driven by a combination of factors that experts describe as the worst possible scenario for containing the virus: conflict, population displacement, community mistrust and the absence of an approved vaccine or treatment for the specific strain.
Julien Harneis, the UN senior Ebola coordinator, painted a grim picture of the situation from Bunia, the capital of Ituri province: "In the last 24 hours, 50 people have died of Ebola in the Congo. And the number of cases is growing exponentially, doubling every 20 days. This is a far faster growth than the growth in our response. And so the gap between the epidemic and our response is widening."
Health Workers Under Attack
The response has been further hampered by attacks on health workers and treatment facilities. In early July, some healthcare workers in Ituri province went on strike due to delayed pay and unsafe working conditions. "They said, 'We've been promised so many times. Our colleagues have died. We're not going to work anymore,'" Harneis told reporters, highlighting the fear and desperation on the frontlines.
The UN has also documented cases of ambulances being stopped and patients turned back by armed groups, while community mistrust has led some families to hide infected relatives rather than seek treatment.
Uganda Successfully Contains Outbreak
Despite the worsening situation in the DRC, Uganda has successfully contained the outbreak. Ugandan authorities officially declared the outbreak over on Tuesday after completing the mandatory 42-day monitoring period following the discharge of the last locally transmitted patient.
Uganda recorded a total of 20 confirmed cases, including two deaths, both of whom were from the DRC. Eighteen patients recovered.
"Uganda's success sends a clear message: when political leadership, communities and public health move together, outbreaks can be stopped," said Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya, adding that the country's achievement reflects the commitment and dedication of health workers, communities, national authorities and partners.
International Response and Funding Gaps
The response remains critically underfunded. The UN humanitarian response plan for the DRC requires US$2.1 billion but is only 45 percent funded. The World Food Programme requires US$76 million for the Ebola response in the DRC over the next six months, covering only logistics, not food.
"Eighty per cent of new cases are outside our contact lists and so are coming to us from unknown chains of transmission," WHO Executive Director Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu warned, describing the outbreak as "a fire" with something driving its expansion.
Ihekweazu told a news conference on Thursday that "It doesn't feel to me like an outbreak that is under control. It is definitely not under control."
With reporting from Reuters, WHO, Africa CDC, UN OCHA, The East African and The Standard.
