Attackers kill nurse, injure health worker responding to DRC Ebola case

The attack in eastern Dr Congo is the latest on health workers and responders to the deadly Ebola outbreak.

A Congolese health worker receives a vaccination in North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, on October 16, 2026 [Gradel Muyisa Mumbere/Reuters]

A nurse has been killed and another health worker severely injured after they were attacked while responding to an Ebola alert in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to the World Health Organization.

It was the latest in a series of attacks on health workers and responders that authorities say is hampering efforts to slow the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in the world.

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The attack took place on Saturday in the town of Bafwasende in the DRC’s eastern Tshopo province, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a post on X on Sunday.

“Everyone working to protect communities from this deadly disease must be able to work in dignity and safety. Healthcare must always be protected,” he said.

The WHO’s regional director for Africa, Dr Mohamed Yakub Janabi, also condemned the attack on X.

“Health is NOT a target,” he said. “Those responding to the Ebola outbreak must be protected. Misinformation and fear must never fuel violence.”

Local authorities have not yet commented on the attack or the suspects.

Data from the DRC’s Ministry of Health indicate that more than 9,800 cases, including more than 4,700 deaths, have been recorded since the start of the outbreak in May, making it the deadliest Ebola outbreak in the country’s history.

The government’s handling of the outbreak, combined with chronic corruption, has sown widespread distrust, with some even dismissing Ebola as a hoax.

Responders say scepticism about the disease among communities has complicated their efforts, including in remote areas and emerging hotspots already facing shortages of medical supplies and healthcare workers.

Last month, a DRC politician was beaten to death in North Kivu after publicly defending the government’s response to Ebola. He had called on the public to obey response measures, particularly social distancing and hand-washing, on a radio show.

In May, at the start of the outbreak, angry residents set alight two tents at health centres in two separate attacks in just one week.

Responders say some residents have held captive or threatened team members in designated health zones.

Spreading to other countries

The current outbreak has now been reported in four countries across eastern, central ⁠⁠and western Africa, giving it the widest geographic spread of any Ebola outbreak on the continent to date.

On Sunday, Uganda’s Minister of Health Chris Baryomunsi announced that all citizens returning to the country with a history of travel to the DRC will be quarantined for 21 days.

Uganda says it is ⁠Ebola-free after declaring an end to its latest outbreak in July. But health experts remain on alert after two people who had recently passed through the country later tested positive in Kenya and Nigeria.

Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people.

The strain responsible for the current outbreak, known as Bundibugyo , has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.

Symptoms can take up to 21 days to appear, according to the WHO. In an October 23 update, it urged stronger monitoring and cooperation across borders, while advising against restrictions on travel or trade with affected countries.

刚果（金）东部发生的这起袭击事件，是针对卫生工作者和应对致命埃博拉疫情的救援人员的最新一起事件。

2026年10月16日，一名刚果卫生工作者在刚果民主共和国北基伍省接受疫苗接种。[Gradel Muyisa Mumbere/路透社]

据世界卫生组织称，在刚果民主共和国（刚果（金））应对埃博拉疫情警报时，一名护士遇害，另一名医护人员重伤。

这是近期一系列针对医护人员和救援人员的袭击事件中的最新一起，当局称这些袭击阻碍了遏制全球增长速度最快的埃博拉疫情的努力。

肯尼亚宣布第二例埃博拉死亡病例，称“没有证据”表明存在社区传播（列表1/3）。

世界卫生组织宣布在刚果民主共和国启动埃博拉疫苗临床试验（共3项，此为第2项）

乌干达下令对从刚果民主共和国返回的公民进行21天埃博拉隔离（共3项，此为第3项）

世界卫生组织总干事谭德塞周日在X网站上发帖称，袭击事件发生在周六，地点位于刚果民主共和国东部乔波省的巴夫瓦森德镇。

他说：“所有致力于保护社区免受这种致命疾病侵害的人都必须能够在有尊严和安全的环境下工作。医疗保健必须始终得到保障。”

世界卫生组织非洲区域主任穆罕默德·雅库布·贾纳比博士也谴责了对X的袭击。

他说：“健康不是攻击目标。参与埃博拉疫情应对的人员必须受到保护。绝不能以虚假信息和恐惧助长暴力。”

当地政府尚未就此次袭击或嫌疑人发表评论。

刚果民主共和国卫生部的数据显示，自 5 月份疫情爆发以来，已记录超过 9800 例病例，其中包括超过 4700 例死亡，使其成为该国历史上最致命的埃博拉疫情。

政府对疫情的处理方式，加上长期存在的腐败问题，已经造成了广泛的不信任，甚至有人认为埃博拉病毒是骗局。

救援人员表示，社区对这种疾病的怀疑态度使他们的工作变得更加复杂，尤其是在偏远地区和新兴疫情热点地区，这些地区本来就面临医疗用品和医护人员短缺的问题。

上个月，刚果民主共和国一名政治人物在北基伍省被殴打致死，此前他曾公开为政府应对埃博拉疫情的措施辩护。他曾在电台节目中呼吁公众遵守防疫措施，特别是保持社交距离和勤洗手。

5 月疫情爆发初期，愤怒的居民在一周内两次纵火焚烧了医疗中心的两个帐篷。

救援人员称，一些居民在指定的卫生区域内扣押或威胁救援队员。

蔓延到其他国家

目前，埃博拉疫情已蔓延至非洲东部、中部和西部的四个国家，是迄今为止非洲大陆上埃博拉疫情传播范围最广的一次。

周日，乌干达卫生部长克里斯·巴里奥蒙西宣布，所有曾前往刚果民主共和国旅行后返回乌干达的公民将被隔离 21 天。

乌干达在7月宣布最新一轮埃博拉疫情结束后，称该国已无埃博拉病例。但由于两名近期途经乌干达的人员随后在肯尼亚和尼日利亚的检测中呈阳性，卫生专家仍保持警惕。

埃博拉病毒通过与感染者体液直接接触传播。

导致此次疫情爆发的毒株被称为 Bundibugyo，目前尚无获批的疫苗或特效疗法。

世界卫生组织表示，症状可能需要长达21天才会出现。在10月23日的最新报告中，世卫组织敦促加强跨境监测与合作，同时建议不要限制与受影响国家的旅行或贸易往来。