Ebola: Experts warn of scale and spread of deadly virus

Global health authorities have warned that the number of deadly Ebola virus infections reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) most recent outbreak of the disease represents just a fraction of actual cases, adding that cases spread to regions far from the outbreak's origin.

So far, some 600 suspected cases have been confirmed, resulting in an estimated 130 deaths.

On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared this latest outbreak, the 17th overall in DRC, a "public health emergency of international concern."

On Thursday, Uganda suspended public passenger transportation to Congo due to the Ebola outbreak. The Health Ministry said the suspension would last four weeks but would not apply to the transportation of food or goods.

Jane Halton, chair of the board of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), a Norway-based global vaccine initiative, described the outbreak like an iceberg: "We've seen the top of the iceberg. The top, as we get closer to it, is pretty large."

"We are now into the many hundreds of cases and hundreds of deaths," Halton told a group of UN-accredited correspondents in Geneva, Switzerland, "but the truth of the matter is that real numbers are much bigger than that."

Pressed on whether CEPI had identified potentially safe vaccines that could be effective against the Bundibugyo strain of the virus and deployed at scale within the next 100 days, she said, "possibly," adding, "it's a big lift."

Unlike the Zaire strain of the Ebola virus, there are no known vaccines to combat the previously less lethal Bundibugyo strain. And although work on a vaccine had begun before the outbreak, Halton said jab-makers are in a "very difficult position."

What makes this Ebola outbreak different from others?

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First confirmed Ebola cases reported in far-off, rebel-held South Kivu

On Thursday, a spokesman for the Rwanda-backed M23 militia said tests had confirmed "a new positive case" in eastern Congo's South Kivu. The region is under the rebel group's control and several hundred kilometers south of the outbreak's epicenter in Ituri Province.

The case was registered near the provincial capital Bukavu, which fell to M23 rebels in February 2025.

The group said the victim had come from Kisangani in eastern Tshopo Province, where no infections had previously been known. 

The 28-year-old victim is said to have died and been "buried safely," according to an M23 statement.

Another potentially infected individual in the region has been isolated, according to local officials.

Although rebels have said they are committed to working with international organizations to combat the spread of the virus, access to the area has been hampered by ongoing widespread violence.

Beyond this, assistance has also been impeded by cuts to international aid by major donors.

Ebola outbreak adds to fears in conflict-ridden Ituri, Congo

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India, AU postpone summit due to concerns over Ebola outbreak

In New Delhi, India's Foreign Ministry announced the postponement of next week's scheduled India-Africa Summit with the African Union (AU).

"Mindful of the emerging public health situation on the continent ... the two sides agreed that it would be advisable to convene the Fourth India-Africa Forum Summit at a later date," a Foreign Ministry statement said.

India, the statement continued, is ready "to contribute to Africa CDC-led (Centers for Disease Control) efforts aimed at addressing the evolving health situation."

The fourth installment of the summit was scheduled to take place in New Delhi between May 28 and 31. No new dates have been announced.

Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport on Thursday also issued health advisories for passengers arriving from the DRC, South Sudan and Uganda, where two cases have been reported.

In all, more than 15,000 people have died from the highly contagious haemorrhagic Ebola fever in Africa over the past 50 years.

Edited by: Sean Sinico