World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, after visiting the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, warned that the virus has a 'big head-start' and health authorities are still behind.

Speaking at a press conference in Geneva on Wednesday, Tedros said he had just returned from Ituri Province in eastern DRC, the epicenter of the outbreak. He noted he was 'very encouraged by the level of commitment I saw everywhere I went' but added that 'the virus is still ahead, we need to move faster.'

The virus is also present in North and South Kivu provinces in DRC and in neighboring Uganda. The outbreak is driven by the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no medication or vaccine.

In DRC, 344 cases have been confirmed since the outbreak began in mid-May, with 60 deaths. Suspected cases stand at 166.

Health authorities are working to develop a cure for the Bundibugyo strain and are rushing to improve testing capacity and isolate contacts of affected individuals.

Meanwhile, the Ebola crisis has sparked political controversy elsewhere in Africa. The US regime decided to build a quarantine facility at a base in Kenya, angering Kenyans who believe their country is being exploited by a foreign power. Protests have erupted, and a court order has blocked the project.

Kenya's Health Minister Aden Duale, however, said the isolation center would proceed. 'Quarantine is not only for Americans. Even Kenyans will be isolated at the facility,' he told parliament.

The US Embassy in Nairobi said it was 'working with the Kenyan government to resolve any objections' due to the court order. Reuters reported that at least 20 flights have landed at the base where the facility is being built, but no patients have arrived.

Source: www.dw.com