00:00The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, landed in the eastern Ituri province of the Democratic Republic
00:06of Congo on Saturday to assess a severe outbreak of a rare type of Ebola.
00:11The high-level diplomatic intervention comes as the highly contagious hemorrhagic fever spreads across three eastern provinces and into neighboring
00:19Uganda.
00:19According to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have already been at least 1,077 suspected cases,
00:28including 246 deaths, while Uganda confirmed nine infections.
00:32Containment efforts are severely hindered by regional insecurity, with Islamic State-affiliated ADF militants and M23 rebels controlling significant portions
00:41of the territory.
00:42Health officials expressed deep alarm over nearly a million displaced people living in overcrowded camps near the provincial capital of
00:50Bunia, where poor hygiene could accelerate the epidemic.
00:53In response to the mounting crisis, both Uganda and Rwanda have closed their borders, with Kampala enforcing a 21-day
01:00quarantine for arrivals from the DRC.
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