The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Thursday that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is spreading faster than any previous outbreak, with more than 2,000 confirmed cases recorded just two months after it began.

Cases Rise as Response Struggles to Keep Pace

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the outbreak has surpassed 2,000 confirmed infections, including 796 deaths, making it the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record.

He noted that the country's 2018–2020 Ebola outbreak took more than 10 months to reach the same number of cases, while the current outbreak has expanded at an unprecedented rate.

Declared on May 15, the DRC's 17th Ebola outbreak began in the northeastern province of Ituri and has since spread to five provinces. Cases have also been detected in neighboring Uganda, although most infections remain concentrated in Ituri.

Conflict and Lack of Treatment Complicate Response

Tedros said treatment capacity has expanded to 800 beds, while laboratory facilities have increased from one to 16 since the outbreak began.

However, he warned that the response is still lagging behind the spread of the virus. More than 80% of new infections are being identified outside known contact lists, indicating that many transmission chains remain undetected. Around two-thirds of deaths occur in communities before patients receive medical care.

The current outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment.

Vaccine Trials Underway

Despite the lack of approved therapies, clinical trials are underway in Ituri for two potential treatments, MBP134 and the antiviral drug remdesivir.

The WHO also said safety trials have begun for the ChAdOx1 vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford, while another study is testing the antiviral drug obeldesivir as a preventive treatment for people exposed to the virus.

Tedros noted that 377 people have recovered during the outbreak, demonstrating that early diagnosis and proper medical care can improve survival.

Security Challenges and Funding Gap

The WHO warned that ongoing armed conflict in Ituri continues to hinder access to affected communities and disrupt response efforts. On Wednesday, an Ebola treatment center in the provincial capital, Bunia, was attacked.

Tedros called for increased international support, saying the WHO and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention face a funding shortfall of more than $400 million needed to contain the outbreak.