EASTERN CONGO — Health workers at an Ebola treatment center in Ituri province, eastern Congo, closed the facility and blocked access on Monday, July 13, 2026, halting operations amid an outbreak that has already caused 702 deaths. The disruption coincided with the launch of a clinical trial testing two experimental treatments as the outbreak—driven by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola—becomes the fastest-growing in history.

Nearly 2,000 cases of Ebola have been confirmed in eastern Congo, with suspected cases now reported in two additional provinces, including in the city of Kisangani. The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which there are no approved vaccines. Part of the outbreak is occurring in Goma, a city that rebels backed by Rwanda seized over a year ago.

The striking workers, who included epidemiologists, case investigators, drivers, and gravediggers, burned a tire during their protest. They had not received pay, according to available information. Congolese officials are now in talks with the striking health workers in an effort to resolve the situation and restore services.

Earlier in July 2026, researchers began enrolling participants in a clinical study of two possible Ebola treatments. One is Gilead Sciences’ remdesivir, a drug approved to treat COVID-19. The other is Mapp Biopharmaceutical’s experimental MBP134, which consists of antibodies engineered to target Ebola viruses including Bundibugyo. The World Health Organization stated that patients in the study will be randomly assigned to receive standard care, remdesivir, MBP134, both, or neither. The agency warned it could take months and possibly as many as 1,000 study participants to determine if either drug works.

The treatment study is currently offered at one Ebola treatment center in Ituri province, but it is not being offered at the facility where the strike began. Officials plan to expand the study to other locations once it is safe to do so.

Traditional funerals involving washing and preparing bodies have been restricted to limit transmission. Ebola spreads through contact with bodily fluids such as vomit, blood, or semen, as well as through contact with contaminated surfaces and materials like bedding and clothing. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain, and at times internal and external bleeding. The origin of the current outbreak remains unknown.

Why It Matters

The Bundibugyo virus, first identified during a 2007 outbreak in Uganda, is a species of ebolavirus closely related to the more widely known Zaire ebolavirus. Prior studies—including a 2015 retrospective cohort study on long-term health effects in Bundibugyo survivors and a 2010 analysis of clinical features and fatality rates—have documented its distinct profile. The absence of approved vaccines or therapeutics specific to this strain heightens the urgency of both the clinical trial and maintaining functional treatment infrastructure, especially as the outbreak spreads beyond initial epicenters.