Ebola: In Mongbwalu, MSF center has no confirmed patients for the first time since May

Healthcare workers and residents sang and danced in front of the Ebola treatment center in Mongbwalu, in Ituri province, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, following the discharge of the last hospitalized patients. The images were released by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) on October 28, 2026, and reported by Africanews. According to MSF, this is the first time since May that the facility has had no confirmed Ebola patients undergoing treatment.

Africanews described "scenes of joy" in front of the center. However, caution is necessary, and the sources themselves emphasize this: the news concerns this specific center, not the province, and not the country.

Ten thousand cases surpassed on October 27

According to Congolese health authorities cited by Africanews, the threshold of 10,000 cases was surpassed on October 27, 2026, with the vast majority recorded in the DRC. Africanews reports a death toll approaching 4,900 since the virus appeared in May, without specifying the source of this figure. The epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no approved vaccine. Cases have been reported in the DRC, Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria.

"No country is currently safe"

African health ministers met on October 28, 2026, in an emergency videoconference initiated by African Union health authorities, reports RFI. Africa CDC deemed this epidemic deadlier than the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak and estimated that "no country is currently safe." The continental agency provided two figures that explain the difficulty: 80% of new reported cases are not on contact lists, and up to 65% of deaths occur within the community.

The director of the Nigeria CDC, Jide Idris, insisted on controlling points of entry, according to RFI. Ugandan Minister of Health Chris Baryomunsi welcomed the official eradication of the virus in his country, while warning that the Ugandan experience cannot simply be transposed elsewhere.

The price paid by healthcare workers

The response is being carried out amidst insecurity and the distrust of part of the population, notes Africanews. In Tshopo province, a nurse was killed and a health worker was seriously injured during an attack.

Congolese authorities are maintaining their vigilance: no end to the epidemic has been declared. In Mongbwalu, this October 28, there was no victory statement, only an empty center and people dancing outside.