WHO sees ‘encouraging signs’ in Congo Ebola fight, but warns cases in one eastern region are surging

GENEVA (AP) — The head of the U.N. health agency is hailing “encouraging signs” in the fight against an Ebola outbreak in one part of eastern Congo, while warning that case counts are rising fast in another as officials race to tamp down the virus. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said signs of gaining ground against the Bundibugyo virus, the rare species behind the outbreak , have emerged in Ituri province, but added that the situation is one of “many outbreaks in many places.” “We are now starting to see encouraging signs that we are gaining ground in the most affected parts of Ituri province. Transmission is going down,” the WHO chief told reporters at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva. South Kivu, he said, has reported no new cases since May. “But make no mistake, the epidemic continues to grow and continues to kill,” Tedros said. He said more than 7,200 cases and more than 3,500 deaths have been reported across seven provinces.

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