More than 130 people have died from Ebola outbreak as the US ‘slumps the response.’
Infectious disease physician Dr. Amesh Adalja describes the public health emergency in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan. He emphasized the low risk to the United States but highlighted the critical need for international resources and coordination to eliminate the outbreak at its source.
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An Ebola treatment center at the center of a deadly outbreak in eastern Congo was set on fire on Thursday as angry residents clashed with authorities over the body of a suspected victim.
A witness told The Associated Press that the Rwampara hospital was attacked by local youths attempting to retrieve the body of a friend who had reportedly died of Ebola.
“Police intervened to calm the situation, but unfortunately they failed,” Alexis Buratta, a local student who was in the area, told the outlet. “Young people set the center on fire. That’s the situation.”
The AP reported that people broke into the center and set fire to items inside. A reporter also observed that the body of at least one suspected Ebola victim was being burned inside the facility.
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A security guard stands surrounded by flames in front of an Ebola treatment center in Rwampara, Congo, on Thursday, May 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Dirol Lotsima Dieudon)
The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA) said two tents used to treat Ebola patients at the hospital were set on fire. The organization said six people were receiving treatment for Ebola at the center.
Democratic Republic of the Congo government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said medical care was continuing as normal and all six patients were being treated.
He condemned violence against health facilities and medical staff and called for peace.
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Flames and smoke rise from an Ebola treatment center in Rwampara, Congo, on Thursday, May 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Dirol Lotsima Dieudon)
Deputy Senior Commissioner Jean Claude Mukendi, head of the public security department in Ituri province, said the individuals who burned the tents did not understand Ebola burial protocols.
The incident underlined growing tensions between health officials enforcing strict Ebola prevention measures and local customs surrounding funerals and burial rites.
“His family, friends and other young people wanted to take his body home for cremation, although instructions from authorities are clear during this Ebola virus outbreak,” Mukendi said. “All dead bodies should be buried as per the rules.”
‘Disease
Burnt hospital beds stand at a smoldering Ebola treatment center in Rwampara, Congo, Thursday, May 21, 2026, after people angry at being prevented from removing a body set it on fire, according to a witness and police. (AP Photo/Dirol Lotsima Dieudon)
In its statement, ALIMA condemned the spread of “incorrect or unconfirmed information on social media and the internet”, warning that misinformation can foster fear and distrust of health facilities.
The violent clashes come as Congolese health officials reported 160 suspected deaths and 671 suspected Ebola cases in two provinces in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The United Nations said earlier this week that two cases, including one death, had been reported in neighboring Uganda.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency on Sunday, and the US issued an urgent travel warning for the DRC shortly after.
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Congolese police personnel and civilians stand near a burning Ebola treatment center as aid agencies step up efforts to contain a new Ebola outbreak linked to the Bundibugyo strain at the Rwampara General Hospital in Rwampara, outside Bunya, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, May 21, 2026. (Reuters/Gradel Muyisa Mumbere)
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said earlier this week that he was “deeply concerned about the scale and speed of the pandemic.”
Officials said the outbreak was caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, a rare variant for which existing vaccines may be less effective.
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Nearly $4 million in emergency funding has been approved by WHO to support national authorities responding to the outbreak.
Anders Hagstrom of Fox News Digital and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
