The World Health Organization has raised the public health risk from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo from “high” to “very high” as infections and deaths continue to rise.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday the risk was now considered “very high at the national level, high at the regional level, and low at the global level”.
The outbreak involves the rare Bundibugyo species of Ebola , which has no approved vaccine and kills around a third of those infected.
According to the WHO, there have been 82 confirmed cases and seven confirmed deaths in DR Congo, although suspected figures are significantly higher.
Scientists at the University of Oxford are now developing a potential vaccine based on the same technology used for the AstraZeneca Covid jab.
Animal testing is already under way and clinical trials could begin within months.
The WHO said violence and insecurity in eastern DR Congo are hampering efforts to contain the outbreak.
Tedros warned it was vital to build public trust as fear spreads across affected areas.
Local politician Luc Malembe Malembe told the BBC that angry relatives attacked a hospital after staff refused to release the body of an Ebola victim because of contamination risks.
“They even set fire to tents that were being used as isolation wards,” he said.
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