More than 200 deaths from Ebola in Congo

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) since August 201 people died from Ebola. AFP reports on the basis of the Minister of Health of the Congo. During this epidemic of the virus, between 291 and 326 people got sick.

Read also: Violence and political turmoil hinder the fight against Ebola in Congo.

It is the tenth ebola epidemic that plagued the country since 1976, and the other this year. Efforts to control pests are aggravating violence and political unrest in various regions. The head of the UN security staff called on Friday after a visit by the Director-General of the World Health Organization to not interfere with the assistance provided. He focused on armed groups active in the east of the country.

Teams that carry out response activities are "confronted with threats, physical attacks, re-equipment and kidnapping," he said. "Two of our colleagues in the emergency department were even killed in the attack." Since this year, there has been a vaccine for Ebola. More than 11,000 conglops have been vaccinated in areas of high risk.

North Congo

Northeast of Congo is a conflict area in which several armed groups are in conflict with others. In Ben, one of the city's most important cities in North Kivu province and the outbreak center, aid activities were halted a few days in September after the attack.

Distrust is also a difficult factor in the fight. Some Congolese think that treatment centers are meant for organ trafficking, said the former Red Cross official NRC. The thick suits needed by workers in order to prevent infection further arouse suspicion. The result is that some people refuse to come to treatment centers and sometimes run away, which leads to the spread of the virus.

Without vaccine or treatment, someone who is infected has 90 percent chance of dying from the Ebola virus. Contamination occurs through contact with the body fluids of someone suffering from the disease. Those who become ill will have to deal with sudden fever, muscle pain and weakness ("dry phase"), followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash, impaired liver and kidney function, and sometimes bleeding ("wet phase").