BBC News: Africa’s top health agency has declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s eastern Ituri province.
Around 246 cases and 65 deaths have been reported, mainly in the gold-mining towns of Mongwalu and Rwampara, said the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC Africa).
Its statement on Friday added that it was convening a meeting with DR Congo, Uganda, South Sudan and other international partners to discuss response efforts and cross-border surveillance.
Ebola was first discovered in 1976 in what is now DR Congo, and is thought to have spread from bats.
This is the 17th outbreak of the deadly viral disease in the country.
It is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids, causing severe bleeding and organ failure.
Early symptoms include fever, muscle pain, fatigue, headache and sore throat. There is no cure for Ebola.
Around 50,000 people have died from the virus in different African countries over the past 50 years.
DR Congo’s deadliest outbreak was between 2018 and 2020, during which nearly 2,300 people died.
