Two DR Congo Soldiers Have Died of Ebola, Says Army

Two soldiers from Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) based in North Kivu, eastern region have died of Ebola virus, a military official said Thursday.

Congolese army spokesperson from North Kivu, Mak Hazukay told this news website that two of their soldiers died from the deadly virus while three other soldiers are being monitored.

“The army is taking measures to protect soldiers from being infected by Ebola,” Hazukay said.

The death toll from Ebola since last August has reached 460, according to figures from DR Congo heath ministry on Wednesday.

The soldiers were based in Beni, in North Kivu province which is the epicenter of DR Congo’s most deadly Ebola outbreak.

The Ministry of Health, WHO and partners have continued to face challenges in the containment and control of the Ebola Virus disease (EVD) outbreak in DR Congo.

The number of reported cases increased during recent weeks, most notably from the Katwa health zone in the East of the country where response teams have faced pockets of community mistrust.

The outbreak has also extended southwards to Kayina health zone, a high security risk area.

Teams are working actively to build community trust and scale up response activities around these new clusters.

The current outbreak hotspots of Butembo and Katwa encompass an urban area with a population of approximately one million people.

The control of Ebola spread is also hampered by the violence caused by militias in eastern DR Congo. Over a thousand people have been massacred in the area since 2014 by armed fighters and more than 230 last year, according to US-based rights watchdog, Human Rights Watch.

Persistent intercommunal violence has blighted much of North Kivu, as well as the neighboring provinces of South Kivu and Ituri, long after a half-decade civil war ended in 2003 and more than a hundred militias currently operate in the region.