Six months into the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the death toll surpassed 5,500 people, english.news.cn reported.
The country recorded 11,254 confirmed cases and 5,505 deaths as of Nov. 12, yielding a case fatality rate of 48.9 percent. Health authorities released those figures in a situation report.
Hundreds of new infections continue to emerge each week as the virus spreads into remote rural areas. Escalating violence hampers containment work.
Children account for more than a quarter of confirmed cases and one-third of deaths. Seven in 10 infected children under the age of five have died, according to the World Health Organization.
Armed attacks in eastern provinces threaten the response effort. A recent raid in the Cantine-Aloya area of North Kivu killed 66 civilians and three health workers. Looters ransacked three health facilities during the violence. The attack disrupted surveillance, leaving more than 1,000 contacts lost to follow-up and three confirmed patients unaccounted for.
Another attack struck the region on Nov. 11, pushing the total number of healthcare attacks past 80 since the epidemic began.
Julien Harneis warned at a United Nations briefing that violence by the Allied Democratic Forces kills more people in parts of Ituri and the Kivu provinces than Ebola itself.
“Violence by the Allied Democratic Forces is now killing more people in parts of Ituri and the Kivu provinces than Ebola itself,” Julien Harneis, UN Senior Ebola Coordinator, told english.news.cn.
Harneis identified safe contact tracing in conflict zones as a top priority. He also called for closer cooperation with private healthcare providers. Strengthened preparedness remains essential in areas at risk of transmission.
Transmission has fallen sharply in several early hotspots, according to Chikwe Ihekweazu. The WHO Health Emergencies Program executive director noted progress at a Geneva briefing. Transmission came under control in Butembo and Mongbwalu. Bunia saw new infections halve, though virus spread continues there.
Testing capacity expanded from two laboratories to more than two dozen. Authorities placed nearly 2,000 treatment beds across 104 treatment and transit centers. About 3,000 patients have recovered from the virus.
Contact tracing remains below target goals. Recent imported cases in Kenya and Nigeria highlight the risk of cross-border spread.
The epidemic unfolds alongside a deepening food security crisis. The World Food Program warned that nearly 29 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo faced acute food insecurity. That figure is projected to climb to 30.3 million in early 2027. Conflict, displacement, and hunger amplify the health emergency.
The Congolese government unveiled a new 1.3-billion-dollar Ebola response plan, Harneis said.
A separate 2.2-billion-dollar humanitarian appeal launched in June reached 54 percent funding. Resources remain unevenly distributed among response agencies.
Ending the outbreak depends on reaching communities beyond the effective reach of the response. Candidate vaccines and treatments remain under evaluation. The World Health Organization called for sustained funding through 2027 to protect frontline workers.
Nearly 2,000 treatment beds are available across 104 treatment and transit centers. About 3,000 patients have recovered so far.
Seven in 10 infected children under the age of five have died. Children account for more than a quarter of confirmed cases and one-third of total deaths.
More than 80 attacks on healthcare have been recorded since the outbreak began. A recent attack in North Kivu killed 66 civilians and three health workers.
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