'Perfect Storm' Of Risks Threatens DRC Ebola Response: WHO

Efforts to contain the latest Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo are being threatened by a "perfect storm" of challenges, including rebel violence and pre-election turbulence, the UN said Tuesday.

Geneva, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Sep, 2018 ) :Efforts to contain the latest Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo are being threatened by a "perfect storm" of challenges, including rebel violence and pre-election turbulence, the UN said Tuesday.

Attacks by armed opposition groups in Ebola-hit North Kivu province have risen in recent weeks, with a deadly raid on the town of Beni forcing the World Health Organization to suspend its work, the agency's emergency response chief, Peter Salama, told reporters.

Meanwhile, fears and misconceptions about the virus are being exploited by politicians ahead of DRC's highly-contentious December vote, leading to increased mistrust of health workers among the population, he said.

"We are now extremely concerned that several factors may be coming together over the next weeks to months to create a perfect storm," he said.

"The response at this stage is at a critical juncture."And he warned that the geographical spread of the outbreak was expanding, notably to border areas, with Uganda now facing "an imminent threat."The outbreak, the 10th in DRC's history, has killed 100 people since being declared on August 1 in the eastern part of North Kivu, the agency said.