In the north-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a nurse has died and a colleague lies badly hurt after youths, convinced that health workers were poisoning water and carrying the virus, turned on them while they answered an Ebola alert. It is a grim echo of a familiar human pattern, in which those who come to heal are first feared and then blamed when fear outruns understanding. The outbreak, which began in May and has now claimed more than 4,800 lives and infected nearly 10,000, has spread its shadow beyond the Congolese border, reaching Kenya and Nigeria and prompting Uganda to close
Nurse killed, colleague injured in attack on Ebola responders in north-eastern DR Congo
A nurse was killed and another health worker seriously injured in an attack by local youths; over 4,800 people have died in the DR Congo outbreak.
In the north-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a nurse has died and a colleague lies badly hurt after youths, convinced that health workers were poisoning water and carrying the virus, turned on them while they answered an Ebola alert. It is a grim echo of a familiar human pattern, in which those who come to heal are first feared and then blamed when fear outruns understanding. The outbreak, which began in May and has now claimed more than 4,800 lives and infected nearly 10,000, has spread its shadow beyond the Congolese border, reaching Kenya and Nigeria and prompting Uganda to close its doors more tightly. The Bundibugyo strain, rare and without an approved vaccine, leaves responders with few tools beyond trust, and trust is precisely what the violence has eroded.
A nurse is dead and a second health worker is seriously hurt after the two went to answer an Ebola alert in north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Local youths, according to UN-backed Radio Okapi, accused them of poisoning water sources and spreading the virus. The World Health Organization condemned the killing, with its Director-General insisting that health workers must be able to do their jobs safely and with dignity.
The attack is not an isolated one. A politician was beaten to death last month for promoting measures against the disease, and the Red Cross recorded violent incidents in the outbreak's early months, including injured volunteers and a burned ambulance. The outbreak, which began in May, has killed more than 4,800 people in Congo and infected nearly 10,000.
The virus has now crossed further borders. Kenya and Nigeria have each reported their first linked cases. The Nigerian patient, the Ugandan-born wife of a Swiss diplomat, was flown to Switzerland for treatment, and officials are still working out where she was infected. The Kenyan businessman, who had business interests in Congo, died two days after reaching Nairobi. Both passed through Entebbe airport on the same day, though CCTV showed no direct contact between them.
Uganda, which had been declared free of the disease in August, has responded by admitting only essential travellers from Congo, subjecting them to strict screening, and requiring locator forms from all arrivals. Health Minister Chris Baryomunsi warned that the risk has not ended, pointing to the shared border and the close ties of trade and family that bind the two countries. For now, the questions of how the Nigerian woman was infected and what the response team will say about the attack remain unanswered.
A nurse is dead and a second health worker is seriously hurt after the two went to answer an Ebola alert in north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the UN-backed Radio Okapi, the attackers were local youths who accused the pair of contaminating water sources and spreading the virus. The BBC has asked the Ebola response team to explain the circumstances and had not published a response at the time of reporting.
The World Health Organization condemned the attack. Its Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said health workers must be able to carry out their duties in safety and dignity, and that healthcare personnel should always be protected. The agency also offered condolences to the dead nurse's family and colleagues, and wished the injured worker a swift recovery.
It is not an isolated incident. Last month a politician was beaten to death after promoting measures to stop Ebola's spread. In August, the Red Cross said its volunteers had been injured and an ambulance set on fire across 11 violent incidents in the first 100 days after the outbreak was declared. The outbreak began in May, and more than 4,800 people have died in DR Congo, with nearly 10,000 infected.
Beyond Congo's borders, the picture has grown more complicated. Earlier this month Kenya and Nigeria each reported their first cases linked to the current outbreak. The patient in Nigeria is the Ugandan-born wife of a Swiss diplomat. According to Jean Kaseya, head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, she had travelled to the Ugandan capital for a holiday. On Monday she was flown from Abuja to Switzerland for further treatment, together with her husband, who has shown no symptoms. Nigeria's health ministry said she was stable, conscious and able to communicate. Authorities are still trying to establish where she contracted the virus.
The Kenyan case is a businessman who had arrived from DR Congo, where he had business interests. He died two days after reaching Nairobi, and a woman related to him died over the weekend. Kenya's health ministry said on Monday that the first group of 20 contacts had gone home after 21 days in quarantine, while another 98 remain under supervision. Seven people who have tested positive are stable.
Both the Kenyan and the Nigerian patient tested positive after passing through Uganda's Entebbe airport on the same day, even though Uganda has reported no cases since August. Diana Atwine, the health ministry's permanent secretary, said CCTV footage showed no physical interaction between the two. Ugandan officials had earlier said the woman only transited Uganda on her way to eastern DR Congo, but on Sunday the ministry said Uganda and Nigeria were working to establish her movements, full travel history and possible routes of exposure.
Uganda has responded with new restrictions. Only essential travellers, including aid workers, truck drivers and security personnel, may cross from DR Congo, and they face strict health screening. All arrivals, whatever their origin, must complete locator forms to support contact tracing. Returning Ugandans will undergo 21 days of quarantine at their own cost, and non-essential travel to and from DR Congo is banned. About 60 people monitored after contact with the Kenyan patient have all been discharged. Uganda had recorded 20 cases and two deaths early in the outbreak before the WHO declared it free of the disease in August.
Health Minister Chris Baryomunsi told the BBC's Newsday programme the measures are meant to keep Uganda free of Ebola, and that the recent cases show the risk has not ended. He pointed to the shared border where transmission continues, and to community ties through trade, travel and family. The strain driving the outbreak, Bundibugyo, is relatively rare and has no vaccine or specific treatment, though trials are under way. Still to be answered are how the woman in Nigeria was infected and what the response team will say about the attack.
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