Ebola patients flee after attacks on health centers in the DRC

In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ebola response has been severely disrupted following a series of attacks targeting medical facilities, according to doctors and humanitarian officials.

At least three incidents have been reported in Ituri province, the region where the first cases of the new epidemic were detected. Two attacks targeted the same hospital over the weekend, causing at least 25 patients to flee, according to a hospital official.

Medical teams on the ground describe an already fragile situation, marked by shortages of equipment and personnel, now exacerbated by insecurity. Patients are dispersing, complicating monitoring and isolation efforts, which are essential to limiting the spread of the virus.

The motives for the attacks remain partly linked to local tensions. Some groups are demanding the swift return of bodies to families for traditional burials, while safe funeral practices are essential to prevent contamination. Other residents express a persistent distrust of health interventions, a legacy stemming in particular from previous epidemics in the region.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the outbreak has already caused approximately 220 suspected deaths. Response teams acknowledge the difficulty in containing the spread, describing their efforts as a race against time.

This new crisis is reminiscent of previous episodes in the DRC, where attacks on health infrastructure had already claimed dozens of victims among healthcare workers and severely slowed down operations to combat Ebola.