An Ebola species with no licensed vaccine has crossed the DRC-Uganda border, and a US clinician infected in Congo is being treated in Germany.
James Carter, Public Health Desk · 2 min read
The World Health Organization has declared the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, its highest level of alarm, as confirmed cases passed 130 across the two countries and a US doctor infected while working in Congo was evacuated to Germany for treatment.
WHO’s Director-General made the PHEIC determination on 17 May 2026, finding that “the event meets the criteria of the definition of PHEIC, contained in Article 1 - Definitions of the IHR.” By the agency’s 29 May Disease Outbreak News update, 134 cases had been laboratory-confirmed — 125 in the DRC and 9 in Uganda — with 18 confirmed deaths, a case fatality ratio of 14%. The DRC has also logged 906 suspected cases and 223 suspected deaths. Ituri Province accounts for 88% of confirmed cases, with further spread to North Kivu and South Kivu and, across the border, to Kampala and Wakiso in Uganda.