Ebola had 'big head-start,' WHO chief Tedros warns
Key takeaways
- World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had recently visited the epicenter of the outbreak in the DR Congo.
- Tedros had just returned from visiting Ituri Province in eastern DR Congo, which is the epicenter of the outbreak.
- At the same time, Tedros said the virus is still ahead, and "we need to move faster."
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had recently visited the epicenter of the outbreak in the DR Congo. He said the "virus is ahead of us, we need to move faster."
https://p.dw.com/p/5Eo Xa Health authorities in DR Congo are battling to control the outbreak and isolate patients (FILE: May 31, 2026) Image: Xinhua/picture alliance Advertisement World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during a press conference in Geneva, said the Ebola virus in central Africa has had a "big head-start" and warned that health authorities were still behind.
Tedros had just returned from visiting Ituri Province in eastern DR Congo, which is the epicenter of the outbreak. Tedros said authorities are "catching up" and said he was "very encouraged by the level of commitment I saw everywhere I went" in Ituri Province.