{"id":1929,"date":"2026-06-02T09:30:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T09:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnnglobalnews.com\/2026\/06\/02\/who-calls-for-community-cooperation-to-contain-ebola-outbreak-in-drc\/"},"modified":"2026-06-02T09:30:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T09:30:14","slug":"who-calls-for-community-cooperation-to-contain-ebola-outbreak-in-drc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/?p=1929","title":{"rendered":"WHO calls for community cooperation to contain Ebola outbreak in DRC"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"78ae9b9d-fe59-49a0-9eba-e4a010cae588\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A health worker at the Evangelical Medical Center in the Democratic Republic of Congo.\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/3fa5549e324cf27a4b2597905a7f1e3c3b9b825f\/0_0_3524_2818\/master\/3524.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"371.84165720771847\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">A health worker at the Evangelical Medical Center, where teams are responding to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.<\/span> Photograph: Gradel Muyisa Mumbere\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"78ae9b9d-fe59-49a0-9eba-e4a010cae588\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">A health worker at the Evangelical Medical Center, where teams are responding to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.<\/span> Photograph: Gradel Muyisa Mumbere\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">WHO calls for community cooperation to contain Ebola outbreak in DRC<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus makes appeal after protests against protocols for handling victims\u2019 bodies in Ituri province<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-pzh79o\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Containing the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/ebola\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Ebola<\/a> outbreak in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/congo\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Democratic Republic of Congo<\/a> requires community cooperation and is \u201ceverybody\u2019s business\u201d, the World Health Organization has said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/profile\/tedros-adhanom\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus<\/a>, the organisation\u2019s director general, made the plea on Sunday during a visit to eastern Congo where some residents have protested against stringent medical protocols for handling victims\u2019 bodies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cWe can stop this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/ebola\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Ebola<\/a> and anyone who has it can also recover. But the rule \u2026 is this thing is everybody\u2019s business and every citizen should be involved,\u201d Ghebreyesus said at the opening of a treatment centre in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, which is at the centre of the outbreak.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Protesters have complained restrictions on handling victims\u2019 bodies violate local burial rites, a sentiment that has been linked to at least three attacks against health centres.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"6156c477-c1e3-4086-81ed-238fd3687ae1\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-47fhrn\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-4 | 4\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1kyw41h\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-ak3j0c\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/may\/29\/who-chief-tedros-adhanom-ghebreyesus-drc-ebola-outbreak-epidemic\" class=\"dcr-1m887w9\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-ut4tvs\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1h5b6rb\">\n<div class=\"dcr-169d7yv\">WHO puts Ebola outbreak death rate at \u2018huge\u2019 30-50% as chief arrives in DRC<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-eurq8n\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fkf7vq\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">There is no vaccine for the Bundibugyo virus, the strain behind the current outbreak, but infected people can recover, according to Ghebreyesus.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">He said: \u201cIf you come to health facilities when you have symptoms, you can get the support and recover, so the key is to come forward as early as possible and to get the necessary support.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"8b3e653d-ba34-4142-aa84-cff3acf9fe53\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-173mewl\">\n<div id=\"img-2\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus washes his hands at the Evangelical Medical Center.\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/0bb8f69ae8e8c778eca19b1b8ad5a50d5ecf3f25\/856_0_4519_3617\/master\/4519.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"356.17725160433724\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><a href=\"#img-2\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"8b3e653d-ba34-4142-aa84-cff3acf9fe53\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-fd61eq\"><span class=\"dcr-1inf02i\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus washes his hands at the Evangelical Medical Center.<\/span> Photograph: Gradel Muyisa Mumbere\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Five patients had recovered and four were to be discharged on Sunday, after the earlier discharge of the other patient, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/world-health-organization\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">WHO<\/a> chief said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The organisation has recorded 906 suspected cases and 223 suspected deaths in the DRC. Authorities in neighbouring Uganda have confirmed nine cases and one death.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The number of confirmed cases in the DRC had increased to 282, with 42 deaths, after 19 new positive test results were recorded, according to data distributed by the communications ministry on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Fighting between rival armed groups in the mineral-rich Ituri region has complicated relief efforts, prompting Ghebreyesus to call for a ceasefire, saying: \u201cNo cause, no conflict, no grievance is worth condemning innocent people to death from a preventable disease.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"a8a7a0c5-b511-482d-bb78-88b6f0ca9c34\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-47fhrn\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-12 | 12\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1kyw41h\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-ak3j0c\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/gallery\/2026\/may\/29\/ebola-outbreak-drc-in-pictures\" class=\"dcr-1m887w9\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-ut4tvs\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1h5b6rb\">\n<div class=\"dcr-169d7yv\">Burials and tears as Ebola outbreak continues to spread in DRC \u2013 in pictures<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-eurq8n\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fkf7vq\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Brazilian health authorities said they were monitoring two patients for possible Ebola infection in S\u00e3o Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, although one later tested negative for the virus.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">A 37-year-old man from DRC \u201cexhibited symptoms such as fever, meeting the definition of a suspected case\u201d of Ebola, the S\u00e3o Paulo state government said on Saturday. The health department in Rio de Janeiro state meanwhile reported that it had activated safety protocols after a man from Uganda showed \u201cviral symptoms such as cough, chills and diarrhoea\u201d. He later tested negative but remained in isolation until the investigation was completed, Brazilian authorities said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The DRC outbreak \u2013 which the WHO has declared a public health emergency of international concern \u2013 is the 17th recorded Ebola epidemic in the country. The disease was first identified in the central African country in 1976 and has an average death rate, across all outbreaks, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.who.int\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/detail\/ebola-disease\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">of 50%<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Health officials and aid workers have complained they lack basic supplies such as masks. Medical aid donated by the European Union reached Ituri last week and the US announced $80m (\u00a360m) in additional aid, raising its total commitment to $112m.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"dc142177-e035-4aca-9562-01fb277d32c4\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-173mewl\">\n<div id=\"img-3\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The Evangelical Medical Center, one of the facilities at the forefront of the response to the Ebola outbreak.\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/d9870383d6ace01076a8a7f24f5335563d4dc1a7\/845_0_4511_3610\/master\/4511.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"356.1183772999335\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><a href=\"#img-3\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"dc142177-e035-4aca-9562-01fb277d32c4\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-fd61eq\"><span class=\"dcr-1inf02i\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">The Evangelical Medical Center, one of the facilities at the forefront of the response to the Ebola outbreak<\/span> Photograph: Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/africa\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Africa<\/a> Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said national incident systems must be activated rapidly and that investments in pandemic preparedness must become permanent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Jean Kaseya, the organisation\u2019s director general, said in the Financial Times on Sunday that international support was vital and most effective when it aligned with the strategies of African institutions and African governments. \u201cAfrica\u2019s response to Ebola must be defined by Africa itself,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The medical charity M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res (MSF) warned on Saturday that the disease\u2019s spread was deeply alarming and that never before had so many cases been recorded so soon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">MSF teams were \u201cwitnessing a response that has not yet caught up to the rapid spread of the epidemic\u201d, said the organisation\u2019s deputy director, Alan Gonzalez. \u201cThe reality today is that nobody knows the true scale and severity of this outbreak. New suspected cases are being reported daily, yet hundreds of samples remain untested.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/world\/ebola\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Ebola<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/world\/congo\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Democratic Republic of the Congo<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/world\/africa\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Africa<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/society\/health\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Health<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=WHO%20calls%20for%20community%20cooperation%20to%20contain%20Ebola%20outbreak%20in%20DRC&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/may\/31\/who-calls-for-community-cooperation-to-contain-drc-ebola-outbreak?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fworld%2F2026%2Fmay%2F31%2Fwho-calls-for-community-cooperation-to-contain-drc-ebola-outbreak&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=world\/2026\/may\/31\/who-calls-for-community-cooperation-to-contain-drc-ebola-outbreak\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-babllm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A health worker at the Evangelical Medical Center, where teams are responding to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Photograph: Gradel Muyisa Mumbere\/Reuters View image in fullscreen &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/?p=1929\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1930,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1929"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1929\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}