The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded its deadliest Ebola outbreak, with 2,325 people now confirmed dead, according to figures released by the government on Monday.
The deaths were recorded from 4,945 confirmed infections, surpassing the previous record set during the 2018–2020 outbreak, which claimed 2,299 lives from 3,381 confirmed cases.
The United Nations has described the current outbreak as the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record, warning that the virus is killing an estimated one person every 30 minutes in the country.
The outbreak initially emerged in Ituri Province in northeastern DRC, an area affected by years of conflict, before spreading to five additional provinces.
The latest outbreak was officially declared on May 15, although health authorities believe the virus had already been circulating for several weeks before the declaration.
It is the 17th Ebola outbreak recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country with a population of more than 100 million people.
The World Health Organisation has said it is aiming to bring the outbreak under control within three months.
Ebola is a highly infectious viral disease transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids and can cause severe haemorrhagic fever.
Across Africa, Ebola has claimed more than 15,000 lives over the past five decades.
The continent’s worst-ever outbreak occurred in West Africa between 2013 and 2016, when more than 11,300 people died, primarily in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
