The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has claimed the lives of more than 1,500 individuals, as new statistics indicate the virus's spread continues to outpace containment efforts. The DRC has officially recorded 3,442 cases of the virus, resulting in 1,521 deaths, according to a government update released on Thursday.

This significant increase marks a 50 percent rise in the death toll over the past week alone. Authorities are grappling with efforts to control the epidemic, particularly in the eastern regions of the country where prolonged conflict with rebel groups has weakened government control and infrastructure, creating a challenging environment for public health responses.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) stated that the sharp rise in numbers partly reflects a backlog of cases and deaths that were awaiting confirmation and official recording. The absence of a proven vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain, one of the rarer variants of Ebola affecting humans, combined with the epidemic's occurrence in an active conflict zone, has severely limited public health resources and facilitated the virus's rapid spread.

Further complicating the response are delays in contact tracing, difficulties in accessing affected remote areas, and a lack of trust from local communities. These factors have collectively hindered an effective strategy to curb the outbreak. The majority of the current outbreak is concentrated in the remote Ituri province in eastern Congo, accounting for nearly 90 percent of all cases.

While neighboring Uganda declared an end to its Ebola outbreak on Tuesday, having discharged its last patient in mid-June, the situation in the DRC remains critical. The outbreak has expanded beyond Ituri, with confirmed cases now present in five other provinces, including Kisangani, one of the country's major cities.

Africa CDC Director-General Dr. Jean Kaseya highlighted that 63 percent of confirmed deaths in the last two weeks occurred outside of treatment centers. This is largely attributed to the unsafe handling of bodies of deceased individuals, who remain highly infectious, by residents who come into contact with the remains.

Efforts to contain the disease have also been hampered by internal issues within the DRC's healthcare system. Earlier this month, some healthcare workers in Ituri initiated a strike over unpaid wages and unsafe working conditions, further impeding the fight against the disease's rapid progression.

In the Nyakunde health zone of Ituri, international partners assisting with the Ebola response were forced to temporarily relocate following an attack on a hospital and a treatment center on July 15. This incident, reportedly triggered by the death of a patient, disrupted crucial surveillance activities, contact tracing efforts, and the delivery of essential supplies.