The rate of new cases of Ebola has doubled since September

LONDON (AP) – The number of new cases of Ebola has more than doubled since September after rebel violence in northeastern Congo briefly suspended response efforts, health officials said Thursday.

In a statement, the International Rescue Committee said it was "alarmed" that there were 33 new cases between October 1 and Tuesday, as against 41 cases in September.

Most of the new cases occurred in Beni, where experts had to suspend their efforts to contain the Ebola virus for days after a deadly rebel attack. With several armed groups active in the area, health officials said they were operating effectively in a war zone.

"This is not only a sign that the epidemic is not under control, but that without full engagement from the community, things could get worse," said Dr. Michelle Gayer, Senior Director of Health Canada. the emergency health of the IRC.

Earlier this week, the World Health Organization noted that all health workers who contracted Ebola during this epidemic – until now – have been infected outside of hospitals or clinics, means that the virus is spreading in the community.

The WHO warned that the risk of regional spread of the Ebola virus is "very high," noting that the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri affected by Congo share borders with Uganda. and Rwanda. The WHO said the risk of international spread remains low.

Although the UN health agency said experts were monitoring this week more than 2,100 Ebola cases in Beni, the epicenter of the epidemic, it has also lost 40 others.

The WHO said health workers were looking for a confirmed case that had left an Ebola clinic in Beni and "disappeared in an insecure area of ​​Kalunguta". The spread of the virus in "red zones", where the threat of armed groups makes health efforts almost impossible, is a major concern.

The Ministry of Health of Congo said that to date 159 cases have been confirmed, including 87 deaths. More than 15,000 people have been immunized with a new vaccine since the outbreak was declared on August 1.

The WHO said that health workers burying Ebola victims, whose bodies were infectious, have been confronted with "a new level of aggression" from communities and that the efforts aimed at burying people safely stopped in certain areas.