Colombia earthquake death toll rises above 130 as rescuers search rubble Trump demands Iranian reparations as Hormuz stays shut Ukrainian drones kill 13 in Tatarstan as Russia strikes Zaporizhzhia and Kyiv Nvidia and Wall Street line up $500bn for AI data centres Netanyahu holds out against US-backed Gaza roadmap England under amber heat alerts as drought spreads across Europe Oil holds gains as Hormuz stays shut Meta releases open AI model as Zuckerberg sets out superintelligence vision Turkish parliament clears path for PKK dissolution, Ocalan's status open Record rain floods Shanghai after Typhoon Dolphin landfall WHO dates Congo's Ebola outbreak to February, months before it was declared Russia's Supreme Court bars antiwar Yabloko from Duma ballot Trump cuts childhood vaccine recommendations and splits MMR shot Rhine low water threatens to split Germany's main waterway US intelligence points to Russia over Leipzig airport drone bomb Sixteen Bangladeshi workers killed in Riyadh factory fire China ships 97 percent of the world's humanoid robots Chinese EVs set new sales records in western Europe despite EU duties US appeals court lets social media addiction suits proceed US yields at crisis-era highs as Fed's Hammack floats rate rises IAEA to remove nuclear material from secret Syrian site under US-brokered deal Ceuta mayor demands internment centre as border checks stay US judge dismisses fraud and bribery case against Adani Intel to raise $15 billion in stock sale as AI strains chip supply Zelensky asks Seoul for air defence, warning of North Korean troops in Russia Pope Leo calls for immediate ceasefire after Sudan's army vows to fight on Oil slick nears Oman after blasts on Russia-linked tanker US troops prepare to leave Iraqi Kurdistan by end of September Moldova recalls ambassador from Moscow after drone crash Attackers kill Libya's military intelligence chief in Benghazi Colombia recognises Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights US ammunition shortage weighs on allies US-brokered Israel-Lebanon talks set for Rome Venezuela's government and opposition begin election talks Japanese bond yields rise on bets for faster BOJ rate hikes Long March 7A rocket fails, destroying communications satellite Iran welcomes Saudi-Pakistani-Turkish defence pact as shift away from Washington Houthis plan escalation in Yemen in support of Iran Three confederations press Infantino to resign as Fifa president China opens new trade fronts against Washington Kosovo and Albania call Vucic's Ibar remarks destabilising US visa revocations pass 175,000 Russia's share of India's oil imports climbs to record 48 percent Taiwan tests public resilience with simulated disruption Europe moves toward drafting women for military service Chinese shipping company opens Arctic route around the Strait of Hormuz Component in British naval drones sent signals to China Russia's central bank tells lenders to ease terms for firms hit by drone strikes British man shot dead by Pakistani security forces in Kashmir US pledges $2 billion for battery and materials producers Wildfires spread across Indonesia Enterprise AI costs hit 2026 low as Chinese open models spread Indian police fire teargas at job-exam protesters in Jharkhand Kurdish film-maker describes months of force-feeding in ICE detention Sanders urges Meta, OpenAI and Anthropic to pause AI development Gunman shoots Thai provincial official days after teenager's killing spree Backlash grows against Flock's licence-plate camera network Arab states warn of eroding status quo at Al-Aqsa Airbus and Boeing plan record production ramp-up Hanwha makes $1bn push into US naval shipbuilding FDA orders ingredient disclosure but delays ultraprocessed food curbs Violence mars return of displaced Kurds to Syrian border town US records hottest month in 132 years Colombia earthquake death toll rises above 130 as rescuers search rubble Trump demands Iranian reparations as Hormuz stays shut Ukrainian drones kill 13 in Tatarstan as Russia strikes Zaporizhzhia and Kyiv Nvidia and Wall Street line up $500bn for AI data centres Netanyahu holds out against US-backed Gaza roadmap England under amber heat alerts as drought spreads across Europe Oil holds gains as Hormuz stays shut Meta releases open AI model as Zuckerberg sets out superintelligence vision Turkish parliament clears path for PKK dissolution, Ocalan's status open Record rain floods Shanghai after Typhoon Dolphin landfall WHO dates Congo's Ebola outbreak to February, months before it was declared Russia's Supreme Court bars antiwar Yabloko from Duma ballot Trump cuts childhood vaccine recommendations and splits MMR shot Rhine low water threatens to split Germany's main waterway US intelligence points to Russia over Leipzig airport drone bomb Sixteen Bangladeshi workers killed in Riyadh factory fire China ships 97 percent of the world's humanoid robots Chinese EVs set new sales records in western Europe despite EU duties US appeals court lets social media addiction suits proceed US yields at crisis-era highs as Fed's Hammack floats rate rises IAEA to remove nuclear material from secret Syrian site under US-brokered deal Ceuta mayor demands internment centre as border checks stay US judge dismisses fraud and bribery case against Adani Intel to raise $15 billion in stock sale as AI strains chip supply Zelensky asks Seoul for air defence, warning of North Korean troops in Russia Pope Leo calls for immediate ceasefire after Sudan's army vows to fight on Oil slick nears Oman after blasts on Russia-linked tanker US troops prepare to leave Iraqi Kurdistan by end of September Moldova recalls ambassador from Moscow after drone crash Attackers kill Libya's military intelligence chief in Benghazi Colombia recognises Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights US ammunition shortage weighs on allies US-brokered Israel-Lebanon talks set for Rome Venezuela's government and opposition begin election talks Japanese bond yields rise on bets for faster BOJ rate hikes Long March 7A rocket fails, destroying communications satellite Iran welcomes Saudi-Pakistani-Turkish defence pact as shift away from Washington Houthis plan escalation in Yemen in support of Iran Three confederations press Infantino to resign as Fifa president China opens new trade fronts against Washington Kosovo and Albania call Vucic's Ibar remarks destabilising US visa revocations pass 175,000 Russia's share of India's oil imports climbs to record 48 percent Taiwan tests public resilience with simulated disruption Europe moves toward drafting women for military service Chinese shipping company opens Arctic route around the Strait of Hormuz Component in British naval drones sent signals to China Russia's central bank tells lenders to ease terms for firms hit by drone strikes British man shot dead by Pakistani security forces in Kashmir US pledges $2 billion for battery and materials producers Wildfires spread across Indonesia Enterprise AI costs hit 2026 low as Chinese open models spread Indian police fire teargas at job-exam protesters in Jharkhand Kurdish film-maker describes months of force-feeding in ICE detention Sanders urges Meta, OpenAI and Anthropic to pause AI development Gunman shoots Thai provincial official days after teenager's killing spree Backlash grows against Flock's licence-plate camera network Arab states warn of eroding status quo at Al-Aqsa Airbus and Boeing plan record production ramp-up Hanwha makes $1bn push into US naval shipbuilding FDA orders ingredient disclosure but delays ultraprocessed food curbs Violence mars return of displaced Kurds to Syrian border town US records hottest month in 132 years

Symbolic image: WHO dates Congo's Ebola outbreak to February, months before it was declared

Symbolic image

WHO dates Congo's Ebola outbreak to February, months before it was declared

1 source

The Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo began in February, three months before it was officially declared, the World Health Organization said on Monday. Genetic sequencing pointed to a long chain of undetected transmission.

The WHO's regional director for Africa, Mohamed Yakub Janabi, told a press conference that some cases early in the outbreak were wrongly attributed to malaria and typhoid, and that responders in the Democratic Republic of Congo are struggling to catch up. "So we are chasing the virus, the virus is ahead of us," Janabi said. Congo declared the outbreak on 15 May; according to the Associated Press it is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record.

A toll counted in the thousands

Government figures up to 6 August recorded 4,120 confirmed cases and 1,887 deaths, a fatality rate of 45.8 percent, with 721 people still in isolation or in hospital. The Associated Press cites later government data of 4,200 confirmed cases and more than 1,900 deaths.

A strain with no vaccine

Unlike most previous Ebola outbreaks, this one is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which no vaccines or treatments are approved.