Nearly 2,000 confirmed Ebola cases in DR Congo as the crisis worsens

Health officials in the DRC said Sunday that 1,994 cases of the disease had been reported, of which 1,900 were confirmed to be carriers of the Ebola virus. To date, it has been confirmed that 1,245 people have died, and an additional 94 deaths have been reported.

Last month, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that sporadic violence by armed militias, limited health care resources and hard-to-reach locations meant that the outbreak was taking place in one of the " the most difficult situations ever faced by WHO ".

"The death of Dr. Mouzoko has deeply moved me," said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, in a statement issued after the attack. "I am also deeply concerned about the situation.The cases increase due to violent acts that delay us every time."

The attack took place at a coordination meeting at the hospital where Mouzoko was working.

Doctors Without Borders (Médecins sans frontières) staff were also attacked, prompting the group to suspend work in some areas affected by the Ebola virus.

The DR Congo epidemic has affected the provinces of north-eastern North Kivu and neighboring Ituri. The two provinces are among the most populous in the country and are bordering on Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan.

Unlike the 2014 epidemic that killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa, there are now vaccines and experimental treatments for Ebola. The WHO cautioned against displacement in the affected areas, but that the outbreak was not a "public health emergency of international concern".

Dr. Joanne Liu, International President of Doctors Without Borders, said in March that the response to the Ebola virus should be more community-based and treat patients as human beings "and not as a dual threat."

"People prefer to stay in the community rather than go to treatment centers," she said.

Gwenola Seroux, emergency officer at Doctors Without Borders, warned however that it was "clear that the epidemic is not under control and that we therefore need an increased collective effort The virus has not spread to neighboring countries yet, but the possibility exists. "