Democratic Republic of Congo said on Tuesday (August 11, 2026) that confirmed Ebola deaths had reached 2,011, the latest grim milestone in what health ‌officials have described as the fastest-spreading outbreak on record.

The current outbreak, Congo’s 17th, is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for ​which there are no ‌approved vaccines or treatments.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak, which has also led to cases in neighbouring Uganda, a public health emergency of international concern.

Passengers who disembarked from a boat intercepted by health authorities wait to be tested following the death of a passenger suspected of having Ebola, in Kinshasa
| Photo Credit:
Reuters

A study ‌published last month in the journal Science found ​that transmission may have begun in January or earlier in Ituri province, identifying more than 500 ⁠suspected cases between mid-January and May 15.

Shortages of medical supplies and insecurity in affected areas have complicated efforts to trace ‌contacts, isolate patients and curb transmission.

The Congolese government data shows that only West Africa’s 2014 to 2016 Ebola outbreak was bigger, with 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths recorded across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organization. It took nearly five months from the declaration ‌of that outbreak to hit 1,000 deaths, whereas Congo’s current outbreak ​has hit 2,000 deaths in less than three months.

In an Ebola outbreak in Congo from 2018 to ⁠2020, it took a little over 12 months to hit ⁠2,000 deaths. In the current outbreak, deaths have jumped from 1,000 to 2,000 in less than ‌a month, further underscoring how quickly the virus is spreading.

A positive case of Ebola virus has been identified in France in a patient traveling back from Congo, the French Ministry of Health said Wednesday (June 24, 2026).

The individual, who has not been identified, returned from a humanitarian mission in one of the virus transmission zones in Congo and was taken into care at a specialized facility in France. The person is in stable condition, the Ministry said.

The Congolese Health Ministry said on Wednesday (June 24, 2026) there are 1,094 confirmed cases of Ebola, including 277 confirmed deaths. The Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus does not yet have any vaccines or treatment.

Officials admit there could be far more cases they don’t know about and the peak of the outbreak, which was declared May 15, could still lie ahead.

All precautionary measures, including the patient’s isolation, were taken upon their arrival in France, the Health Ministry said, adding that their transfer to a hospital was carried out under secure conditions to prevent any risk of contamination.

“An in-depth epidemiological investigation is underway to identify individuals who may have been in contact with the patient,” the Ministry said, adding that a regional health agency will closely monitor them during a 21-day home isolation.

The test result of an individual isolated as a matter of caution in Bengaluru has returned negative for the Ebola virus disease, the Union Health Ministry confirmed on Wednesday (May 27, 2026). 

India currently has no confirmed cases of the Ebola virus disease till date, the Ministry said.

“We are closely monitoring the evolving Ebola Virus Disease situation in view of recent outbreaks reported in parts of Africa and exercising abundant caution. One individual with recent travel history from Uganda, who reported mild symptoms of body ache, was placed under isolation at the State-run Epidemic Diseases Hospital in Bengaluru for observation and further evaluation,” the Ministry said.

The Health Ministry maintained that the individual remained otherwise healthy, apart from a mild body ache. The sample was collected and sent to the National Institute of Virology for laboratory testing. “The test result has returned negative for Ebola Virus Disease,” the Ministry said.

The Health Ministry said that it is now maintaining close surveillance in coordination with the concerned State authorities, and all necessary public health protocols are being followed in accordance with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines.

The government remains vigilant and prepared, with screening and surveillance measures continuing at all designated points of entry, and across the public health system, it said.

Citizens are advised to not panic, avoid spreading misinformation, and rely only on official sources for information, the Health Ministry said.

No case of Ebola Virus Disease has been reported in the country so far, the government said on Monday (May 25, 2026) as Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda reviewed the preparedness and surveillance measures to prevent any possible outbreak in India.

According to an official statement, during a high-level meeting with senior officials of the Union Health Ministry, Mr. Nadda assessed the country’s readiness amid global concern over Ebola and directed that all preventive mechanisms remain fully alert and operational.

On the Minister’s directions, the Union Health Secretary chaired a joint review meeting with officials from various ministries and agencies concerned to strengthen coordination and preparedness measures, the statement said.

Mr. Nadda instructed authorities to keep Ebola screening arrangements at all points of entry across the country, including airports, seaports and land border crossings, fully vigilant and robust, it said.

He also directed the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to ensure that all necessary arrangements for tracking, testing and surveillance remain in a constant state of readiness.

The Centre has intensified precautionary measures after the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has also designated it a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS).

Officials said surveillance at ports of entry and coordination among agencies are being closely monitored to ensure early detection and prompt response to any suspected case.

At the heart of the current outbreak of Ebola in Central Africa is a quirky name —Bundibugyo. The less-known Bundibugyo ebolavirus strain that causes an often-fatal viral haemorrhagic fever is the primary causative agent in the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. While related to the more common Zaire ebolavirus and the Sudan ebolavirus, there have been only two documented Bundibugyo-related outbreaks (Uganda in 2007, and another in the DRC in 2012). Currently, there are no vaccines or specific therapies against it, though efforts are on to fast-track the development of a vaccine.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared with unusual alacrity a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), even bypassing conventional consultations with expert bodies to do so. Soon after the DRC and Ugandan governments declared an outbreak of Ebola, on May 15, the WHO announced a PHEIC.

The name Bundibugyo comes from the days when pathogens used to be named after the places they were discovered in, though that naming convention is no longer considered fashionable. It was first identified in 2007 in the Bundibugyo district of western Uganda. Bundibugyo, in the Western Region of Uganda, bordering the DRC, is the headquarters of the Bwamba Kingdom. After a mysterious illness broke out in 2007, the Bundibugyo ebolavirus was identified in diagnostic samples submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, U.S., in November 2007, according to a 2010 article in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Previously documented Bundibugyo outbreaks have reportedly had case fatality rates of 30% and 50% — more or less the same fatality rate as the more common Zaire ebolavirus strain that caused havoc in Africa between 2014 and 2016. While this has caused fears that the virus is probably as deadly, the extra concern is because the outbreak has started in a conflict-ridden area, making case detection and contact tracing difficult and access to care uneven.

As of May 21, 2026, a total of 83 confirmed cases, including nine deaths, and 746 suspected cases, including 176 deaths, have been reported from 15 health zones in the DRC. Four health worker deaths have been reported to date. An American national who was working in the DRC as a surgeon has also been confirmed to have Ebola, reportedly having been exposed to the virus during a procedure he performed on May 11. He is being treated in isolation in Germany.

Similar symptoms

According to an article in the Scientific American, the symptoms of an infection with the Bundibugyo virus resemble those of other orthoebolaviruses. Early on, they include an intense headache, high fever, body ache and fatigue. This is known as the “dry symptoms”, but as the infection progresses, people can develop “wet symptoms” or intense vomiting and diarrhoea, which can become life-threatening. It further says: the viruses are also known to cause hemorrhagic fever, infecting specific immune cells and triggering a massive inflammatory response that can lead to internal bleeding and organ failure.

Efforts are in place to improve identification of persons with suspected infection, trace their contacts, contain the spread of infection and make sure that everyone with the symptoms receives appropriate care at a health facility.

Meanwhile, the WHO has raised the public risk from the Ebola outbreak in DRC from ‘high’ to ‘very high’. The scheduled India-Africa Forum Summit has been cancelled due to the ongoing crisis. British media have reported that scientists at Oxford University are working on developing a new vaccine to tackle the Bundibugyo strain, and that it might be ready for clinical trials in two or three months. Additionally, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, a global partnership working to accelerate the development of vaccines and other biologicals, has claimed that it is working at pace with partners, including Africa CDC, WHO and national authorities, to identify opportunities to rapidly advance vaccine development.

An Air France flight bound for Detroit was diverted to Montreal after a passenger from the Congo boarded a flight in Paris “in error” amid flight restrictions tied to the Ebola outbreak, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said.

A spokesperson for the agency on Thursday (May 21, 2026) said the passenger “should not have boarded” the plane on Wednesday (May 20) due to U.S. entry restrictions put in place to reduce the risk of Ebola spreading.

The spokesman said in an email officials “took decisive action and prohibited the flight carrying that traveller from landing at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, and instead, diverted to Montreal, Canada”.

Air France said the Congolese passenger was denied entry into the U.S. due to new regulations that travellers from certain countries, including the Congo, can enter only through Washington.

The Department of Homeland Security also said that as of Thursday (May 21), all U.S.-bound American citizens and permanent residents who have been in Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the previous 21 days must only enter through Washington Dulles International Airport for enhanced screening.

Craig Currie, spokesman for the Public Health Agency of Canada, said U.S. officials informed Canadian authorities that the plane was denied entry due to temporary travel restrictions for anyone who had travelled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan within the previous 21 days.

Mr. Currie said a public health official in Montreal assessed the traveller as asymptomatic. He said the traveller has flown back to Paris.

“Air France flight AFR378, along with all other passengers, continued to its original destination of Detroit,” Currie said in an email.

The World Health Organisation on Sunday (May 17) declared the Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo virus, which is rarer than other viruses, and there is no available vaccine or treatment for it.

Ahead of next week’s India-Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi, the African Union has called for “collective international solidarity and cooperation” to deal with the Ebola virus outbreak affecting multiple African countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda.

Responding to queries from The Hindu, Nuur Mohamud Sheekh, spokesperson of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, said the upcoming summit would provide an opportunity to work on “future pandemics” and a response mechanism.

“While the Ebola outbreak is affecting a number of African countries, it is important to underscore that pandemics and public health emergencies respect no borders and require collective international solidarity and cooperation,” Mr. Sheekh said on Monday (May 18, 2026) in an email response to The Hindu.

The African Union’s statement came a day after the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreaks in the DRC and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). 

Earlier, Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf expressed deep concern about the outbreak and said Africa would ‘overcome’ the latest challenge through “unity, coordination and collective action”.

India, which partnered with African countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, is set to host the India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-IV) from May 28 to 31, with African Union member states expected to participate.

The Ministry of External Affairs has not responded to queries from The Hindu on whether the Ebola outbreak will cast a shadow on the conduct of the IAFS-IV in Delhi; however, the United States Embassy in Uganda has temporarily paused visa operations from May 18 in light of the outbreak.

Mr. Sheekh, however, said at the moment the outbreak is not expected to affect the summit, arguing that the event would serve as an important platform ”for strengthening Africa-India cooperation, including in the fields of public health preparedness, biotechnology, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and pandemic response”.

“Africa stands to benefit greatly from deeper collaboration and knowledge-sharing with India in building resilient health systems capable of responding to future pandemics and health emergencies,” he said.

Ahead of next week’s India-Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi, the African Union has called for “collective international solidarity and cooperation” to deal with the Ebola virus outbreak affecting multiple African countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda.

Responding to queries from The Hindu, Nuur Mohamud Sheekh, spokesperson of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, said the upcoming summit would provide an opportunity to work on “future pandemics” and a response mechanism.

“While the Ebola outbreak is affecting a number of African countries, it is important to underscore that pandemics and public health emergencies respect no borders and require collective international solidarity and cooperation,” Mr. Sheekh said on Monday (May 18, 2026) in an email response to The Hindu.

The African Union’s statement came a day after the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreaks in the DRC and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). 

Earlier, Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf expressed deep concern about the outbreak and said Africa would ‘overcome’ the latest challenge through “unity, coordination and collective action”.

India, which partnered with African countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, is set to host the India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-IV) from May 28 to 31, with African Union member states expected to participate.

The Ministry of External Affairs has not responded to queries from The Hindu on whether the Ebola outbreak will cast a shadow on the conduct of the IAFS-IV in Delhi; however, the United States Embassy in Uganda has temporarily paused visa operations from May 18 in light of the outbreak.

Mr. Sheekh, however, said at the moment the outbreak is not expected to affect the summit, arguing that the event would serve as an important platform ”for strengthening Africa-India cooperation, including in the fields of public health preparedness, biotechnology, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and pandemic response”.

“Africa stands to benefit greatly from deeper collaboration and knowledge-sharing with India in building resilient health systems capable of responding to future pandemics and health emergencies,” he said.