The latest Ebola outbreak could be the worst ever

The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has rapidly evolved into a large and geographically expanding epidemic since it was declared on May 15, 2026. Reuters reported that government data showed cases passing 11,000, while Al Jazeera noted 5,387 deaths. According to the World Health Organization, the current crisis is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, marking only the second documented outbreak of this strain in the country following a 2012 event. Nature World News reported that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention listed 10,563 cases and 5,130 deaths through November 1, while Africa CDC reported 5,376 deaths as of November 2 across Congo, Uganda, and Kenya. Outbreak News Today reported that total confirmed cases in the DRC reached 10,803, including 5,267 deaths, with an overall case fatality rate of 48.8%. Ituri remains the primary epicentre, followed closely by North Kivu, where the case fatality rate stands at 54.6%. Confirmed cases have spread across eight Congolese provinces and reached 67 out of 178 health zones. Cross-border transmission has affected multiple nations. The World Health Organization reported that cases have been identified in five countries in total, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, France, Kenya, and Nigeria. Nature World News noted that Uganda recorded 20 cases before its outbreak was declared over, and France treated one case in July who has since recovered. Kenya reported its first laboratory-confirmed imported case in October, totaling nine cases and one death in Nairobi, all linked to the initial patient. Nigeria reported an imported case in Abuja on October 20, and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control stated that the patient and a close contact were medically evacuated to Switzerland on October 26. Conflict and delayed international support have hampered containment efforts, according to background provided by multiple sources. Furthermore, approved Ebola vaccines and antibody treatments target the Zaire ebolavirus species rather than the Bundibugyo strain, though doctors in Congo are testing whether the Ervebo vaccine offers cross-protection. In response to the spread, the CDC implemented a new travel policy requiring all passengers on international flights to the United States to attest they have not been in Congo in the previous 21 days.