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JOHANNESBURG (AP) – The Congolese Health Minister has described the day as a "black day" for all those fighting the Ebola epidemic after the rebels killed two medical officers in the country. Congolese army, who assisted the health authorities.
This seems to be the first time that health workers have been killed by rebels in this epidemic, which is taking place in what has been compared to a war zone. Several rebel groups are active in the far northeastern Congo.
In a statement released Saturday by the Ministry of Health, Mai Mai rebels stepped out of the forest and opened fire on unarmed agents with the military's rapid intervention medical unit. at the entrance to the town of Butembo.
The day attack seemed premeditated, with civilians present being left unharmed, the statement said. Medical officers had been placed in "danger zones" to assist health workers at national borders.
Health workers involved in the outbreak described hearing gunshots every day, carrying out Ebola containment under armed escort and forced to end their work at sunset to reduce the risk of death. attack.
The number of confirmed cases of Ebola has now reached 200, including 117 deaths. The aid groups expressed concern after the insecurity and sometimes hostile community resistance brought the number of new cases to more than double this month.
The Congo Ministry of Health reported "numerous attacks" on health workers and two Red Cross volunteers were seriously injured in a confrontation with concerned community members in a traumatized area by decades of fighting and facing for the first time an Ebola outbreak.
"Health workers are not targeted by armed groups," Health Minister Oly Ilunga said Saturday. "Our agents will continue to go to the field every day to fulfill their mission, they are true heroes and we will continue to take all necessary steps to ensure that they can do their job safely."
A deadly rebel attack against civilians in Beni late last month forced the suspension of Ebola containment efforts for several days, and the effects are still visible. Many of the new cases confirmed this month, six of which were reported on Saturday, occurred in Beni, where most of the Ebola work is being done in this outbreak.
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said it was "deeply concerned" by the ongoing epidemic but that the situation does not yet warrant being declared a global emergency. To be declared a global emergency, an epidemic must be an "extraordinary event" that could cross borders and require a coordinated response.
Confirmed cases in this outbreak have been discovered near the busy border with Uganda.
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