Key facts
- Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo have reached 676, with 136 deaths.
- Uganda has reported 19 confirmed cases and two deaths.
- US CDC modeling indicates a potential for over 20,000 cases within three months without strong interventions.
- The US plans to establish a quarantine facility in Kenya, sparking protests.
- At least three protesters have been killed in clashes with police in Kenya.
Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have climbed to 676, with 136 deaths, as health officials continue to struggle to contain the outbreak. Uganda has also reported 19 confirmed cases and two deaths. The current outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebolavirus, is already the third largest on record, and experts fear it could expand significantly, having potentially spread for months before being declared on May 15.
Investigators are working backward to identify the first case, with evidence pointing to a potential superspreader event at a funeral on February 4 for a pastor in the gold-mining town of Mongbwalu. Many attendees fell ill shortly after, and nearly 50 deaths were recorded in the town within two weeks, with symptoms consistent with Ebola.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released modeling that suggests the outbreak could rival or exceed the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak, which saw over 28,000 cases and 11,000 deaths, if public health interventions are not swiftly and strongly implemented. In a worst-case scenario, with only 20 percent of cases isolated, simulations project more than 20,000 cases and 4,000 deaths within three months.
Meanwhile, the US administration's isolationist strategy, including travel restrictions, has heightened tensions. The US plans to establish a makeshift quarantine facility at a military base in Kenya, a country not currently affected by the outbreak, to house exposed or infected individuals who cannot return to the US. This plan has ignited outrage and violent protests among Kenyans, who accuse their government of compromising national biosecurity for foreign aid. The Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union expressed disgust at the government's willingness to endanger its citizens. Hundreds have protested in Nanyuki, near the air base, with reports from the Kenya Human Rights Commission indicating at least three protesters have been killed in clashes with police. Despite a temporary suspension of the facility's opening by a Kenyan court, the US administration intends to proceed with the plans.