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International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Health
Thea Felicity

What Is the Bundibugyo Virus? The Rare Ebola Strain Behind Congo's Deadly Outbreak Triggering Travel Warnings

WHO Ebola Congo Bundibugyo United States Uganda
This 1976 photograph shows two nurses standing in front of Ebola case #3, who was treated, and later died at Ngaliema Hospital, in Kinshasa, Zaire. Ebola hemorrhagic fever (Ebola HF) is a severe, often-fatal disease in humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans that has appeared sporadically since its initial recognition in 1976. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The Bundibugyo virus, a rare strain of Ebola, has been identified as the cause of a deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed on 17 May 2026, with the event now declared a public health emergency of international concern.

The outbreak has already been linked to at least eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected infections and around 80 suspected deaths, according to WHO figures cited in its official statement.

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