DRC Ebola deaths exceed 1,500 amid continuing response difficulties

Key points

• The Democratic Republic of the Congo has recorded 3,442 Ebola cases and 1,521 deaths, according to a government update.
• The reported death toll rose 50 percent in one week; Africa CDC said some newly counted cases and deaths came from an earlier backlog.
• No proven vaccine is available for the Bundibugyo Ebola strain, the rarest of the four variants known to infect humans.
• Ituri province contains nearly 90 percent of cases, while five other provinces, including Kisangani, have confirmed infections.
• Africa CDC cited delayed contact tracing, restricted access to affected communities and public mistrust as obstacles to controlling transmission.
• Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said 63 percent of confirmed deaths during the past two weeks occurred outside treatment facilities.
• Healthcare workers in Ituri briefly struck over unpaid wages and unsafe conditions, while a July 15 attack forced response partners to relocate temporarily.
• Uganda declared itself free of Ebola after discharging its final patient in mid-June, officials said Tuesday.
• The World Health Organization said the risk of international spread remains low and reported no sustained transmission from cases identified outside the DRC.