Attack on Ebola victims' burial teams in Congo increases infections

This targeted a burial team made up of specialists trained to handle highly infectious bodies according to strict infection prevention protocols.

The individuals dealt with the victim's body

The body was subsequently handled by members of the community, a high-risk practice that could lead to new chains of infection, according to a situation report published online Wednesday.

Neither the health ministry nor the hospital official identified the cause of the attack, but the incident highlights the mistrust and resistance that continue to hamper response efforts as officials try to control the spread of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola.

In recent weeks, burial teams and health workers have been targeted, including by relatives of victims who questioned the cause of death.

In a similar incident last Monday in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province where the first cases of the Bundibugyo strain were confirmed, residents attacked a response team at a cemetery, injuring at least four people, according to a situation report and a local relief worker.

363 confirmed cases

Congo has recorded 363 confirmed cases of Ebola and 62 deaths since the latest outbreak, the country's 17th, which was declared on May 15, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Health.

Health authorities announced 19 new confirmed cases, including two deaths, in the latest update, with the infection spreading to 17 of the 36 health districts in Ituri province.

The last few days have seen a steady increase, with cases also reported in 7 health districts in North Kivu province and one health district in South Kivu province.

Franz Celestin, the regional head of the International Organization for Migration, told Reuters on Thursday that the organization is helping to set up 30 health surveillance centers in the three Ebola-affected provinces to monitor people's health and prevent patients from spreading the virus further.

The ministry noted some progress, highlighting 32 contacts in Ruambara in Ituri, who were monitored for 21 days and tested negative for Ebola.

The ministry also announced that officials in the city of Goma, North Kivu, were preparing on Wednesday to discharge a recovered patient.

Freddy Kaneke, deputy coordinator of the Alliance of Forces for Change/March 23 rebels, said in a post on X on Wednesday that the patient had returned to her family.

International aid continues to flow into eastern Congo. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies announced on Thursday that enough safe burial supplies for 300 bodies had arrived in Bunia on June 3.