Ebola Outbreak Spreads: DRC Rebels Report First Confirmed Case in Controlled Territory

(CNA, Bukavu, DR Congo, 21st, Comprehensive Foreign Report) As the Ebola outbreak continues to spread in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a spokesperson for the country's paramilitary group, the March 23 Movement (M23), confirmed today the first case in the South Kivu province under its control. The patient passed away before the test results confirmed the diagnosis. According to Agence France-Presse, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently declared this deadly Ebola virus outbreak a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern' (PHEIC). However, efforts to control the epidemic are hampered by ongoing internal conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), including continuous fighting between government forces and M23. With assistance from Rwanda, M23 has occupied a large portion of the mineral-rich eastern region of DR Congo and intends to govern these controlled areas for the long term, establishing an administrative system parallel to the DR Congo government. But M23 has no prior experience in dealing with major epidemics like the Ebola virus. The M23 spokesperson stated that test results 'confirmed a new case in Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province'; the city of Bukavu has been under M23 control since February 2025. According to the spokesperson, this case 'came from the city of Kisangani in the eastern Tshopo province,' adding that no Ebola cases had been reported from that province so far. The spokesperson added, 'This 28-year-old fellow Congolese citizen unfortunately passed away before the test confirmed the diagnosis.' (Translator: Kao Chao-fen / Editor: Hung Chi-yuan)