CIDRAP News: Decline in Ebola cases comes amid fragile security situation
“It its latest weekly Ebola assessment, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Ebola cases have dipped slightly in the past weeks, but it warned that the decline should be interpreted with extreme caution, due to the complex environment and fragile security situation. Meanwhile, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) health ministry yesterday reported 6 more cases, pushing the outbreak total to 1,926 cases…” (5/29).

The Guardian: Congo Ebola response must be elevated to maximum level, U.N. told
“The U.N. has been urged by charities to ramp up Ebola prevention work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the highest level of emergency response. Only three crises — Yemen, Syria, and Mozambique — are treated as the equivalent of a level-three response, activated when agencies are unable to meet needs on the ground. Charities including Mercy Corps and Oxfam said the same declaration should also be made in DRC, following a recent acceleration in the spread of Ebola…” (Ratcliffe, 5/29).

Reuters: Congo’s Ebola epidemic inflicts heavy toll on children
“…The Ebola outbreak in Congo — the second-largest on record — has inflicted an unusually heavy toll on children. More than a quarter of the confirmed and probable cases identified as of early April were children under 15, compared to 18% in the last major outbreak in West Africa in 2013-2016, according to figures compiled by the World Health Organization…” (Prentice et al., 5/30).

VOA News: DRC’s Ebola Battle Fraught With Security Risks
“The World Health Organization says success in ending the Ebola epidemic in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo hinges upon improving security in North Kivu and Ituri provinces. The region has been engulfed in conflict for many years, and many locals do not trust outsiders, even the ones trying to stop the spread of the deadly virus…” (Schlein, 5/29).