The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has reopened ​the airport in the capital city of the province ⁠hit hardest by the ongoing Ebola outbreak, a government statement said, reversing a move that some residents said had cut them off from critical supplies.

The government ‌in Kinshasa announced last month that it was suspending passenger flights to Bunia, the main airport in Ituri, where ‌the first Ebola cases were confirmed. Humanitarian and medical flights continued ‌, subject ⁠to approvals. In a statement published late on Monday (June 1, 2026), ⁠Congo’s Transport Ministry said conditions were now in place “to allow a gradual and safe resumption of air transport activities” and that the airport would re-open immediately.

The Ministry said all ​passengers would have their body temperatures ‌screened before boarding and on arrival, that passengers were required to wash their hands before boarding and that any passenger with a fever would not be allowed to board.

The Africa Centres for ‌Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) announced the outbreak of the Bundibugyo ​strain of Ebola, Congo’s 17th Ebola outbreak, on Friday (May 15, 2026) and the World Health Organization (WHO) swiftly declared it a ⁠public health emergency of international concern. The outbreak, already the third-largest on record, persisted for weeks undetected, say health officials, who are now behind the curve ‌and struggling to bring it under control.

Confirmed cases rise to 321

The decision to re-open the airport in Bunia followed a visit from WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who told reporters on Monday (June 1, 2026) he saw some encouraging signs in the response, including five certified recoveries. But he also noted the need to ramp up testing and treatment ‌capacity and promote trust in health workers. There have been 321 confirmed Ebola cases including ​48 confirmed deaths, according to the latest government figures on Monday (June 1, 2026).

Ebola has reached 15 of 36 health zones ⁠in Ituri, and cases have also been reported in North and South Kivu ⁠provinces and in neighbouring Uganda.

The International Rescue Committee warned on Monday (June 1, 2026) that the outbreak was probably significantly larger and more ‌advanced than official figures suggested.

The aid agency said the virus might have been spreading for up to three months before the first ​official cases were detected in mid-May. 

A vaccine against the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus will be ready by the end of the year, the Director General of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said on Thursday (May 28, 2026).

The Bundibugyo strain of the virus that has caused a major outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo currently has no approved vaccine or treatment.

Jean Kaseya, head of Africa CDC, said there were already “some candidates” for a vaccine.

“What we can tell you for sure, by the end of this year, 2026, Africa CDC will make sure that we have a vaccine and medicine against Bundibugyo,” he told reporters in an online briefing.

“Our leaders are ready to invest. We are investing at technical level, at a strategic level, to make sure that (the vaccine) will happen,” he added.

Mr. Kaseya said he had received a message the previous day from the Russian Ministry of Health claiming to have already developed a vaccine against the strain.

A member of his team clarified that the proposed vaccine targets the Zaire strain of Ebola, and that upcoming discussions with Moscow’s Gamaleya National Research Centre would indicate why it may be effective against the Bundibugyo strain.

Mr. Kaseya said there had been at least 1,077 suspected cases since the outbreak was declared on May 15, including 246 deaths. That is slightly higher than the latest figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO), which has announced 10 confirmed and 223 suspected Ebola deaths.

Uganda’s confirmed Ebola cases rise to eight

The ‌number of ​confirmed ⁠Ebola cases in Uganda ‌has risen ‌to ‌eight, Mr. Kaseya said.

On Wednesday (May 27, 2026), a ‌senior Ugandan health official ‌said the country’s ​Ebola cases stood ⁠at seven.