Three paramedics injured in Ebola ambulance wounded by Congolese Red Cross ambulance

(This article corrects the title of October 3. Paragraph 1 shows that the volunteers came from the Congolese Red Cross and not from the ICRC.)

KINSHASA (Reuters) – Three Congolese Red Cross volunteers taking part in the burial of an Ebola victim in eastern Congo have been wounded during an attack. by villagers, forcing the International Committee of the Red Cross to suspend the burial in the region, health officials said Wednesday.

The attack of an ambulance carrying the body in a cemetery in the Beni region, North Kivu province, is the last interruption of efforts to control the current epidemic, which has reportedly killed 106 people since the month of July.

Last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) assessed the risk of spreading the disease in the "very high" region after confirming a case near a border crossing at the edge of a lake with Uganda.

Community resistance in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has been one of the major problems facing health workers, in addition to armed militia attacks.

Serge Thierry, ICRC regional representative, told Reuters that three local Red Cross volunteers had been injured, two seriously, during angry residents' attacks.

"Security measures were taken immediately. The funeral is suspended until further notice, "he said by telephone, referring to the ICRC's activities in the town of Butembo and its surroundings in the Beni region.

Proper burial of Ebola victims is essential for controlling the disease, which causes fever, vomiting and diarrhea, and is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids.

Robert Kahumula, local spokesperson for the Congolese Ministry of Health's Ebola virus team, said the health workers "were injured in an attack by young people, skeptical about the presence of the Ebola virus in the region ".

"The burial did not occur because the young people ambushed the intervention team and vandalized the ambulance that was carrying the body," he said. -he declares.

Last Thursday, WHO warned of renewed mistrust of Ebola efforts in some communities in eastern Congo as a result of rumors, misinformation and a preference for traditional medical practices.