New Congo province has suspected Ebola case as deaths hit 600 — report

KINSHASA — The Democratic Republic of Congo reported suspected Ebola cases in a new province on Wednesday, signaling the continued spread of the outbreak as the death toll reached 600.

The outbreak, which was declared on May 15, has infected 1,759 people across the eastern provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, according to the government's latest situation report released Wednesday night.

However, the total does not include two suspected cases in Kisangani, the capital of Tshopo province and one of Congo's largest cities, the report said.

One of the cases is linked to the Niania health zone in Ituri province, where the first infections were identified. The second case "does not appear to have a geographic link" outside Kisangani, according to the report.

The positive test results are undergoing confirmatory testing before they are added to the official case count.

Meanwhile, response teams have intensified surveillance, contact tracing and other containment efforts in Kisangani to prevent further transmission.

Reuters previously reported that Congolese health authorities were monitoring people who may have been exposed to Ebola in Tshopo and Haut-Uele provinces, which had not been affected by the outbreak at the time.

The latest situation report recorded 51 new cases and 20 additional deaths in the previous 24 hours.

The World Health Organization said this week that the outbreak had not yet stabilized and continued to expand, with population movement contributing to the spread of the virus. -Reporting by Congo newsroom; Writing by Amindeh Blaise Atabong; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Stephen Coates/Reuters