Local Official Killed After Advocating for Ebola Response Efforts in DR Congo

Marie-Celestin Karondwa succumbed to injuries sustained during an attack at his residence in Butembo city, an Ebola-affected region, on Sunday.

Published On 1 Oct 2026

A local politician in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was laid to rest on Wednesday following his death after reportedly being assaulted for publicly supporting the government’s Ebola response efforts.

The funeral for Karondwa took place in Butembo, located in North Kivu province, where he served in an official capacity within the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDSP), the party leading the national government.

Karondwa was attacked on Sunday at his home, an incident his party described as retaliation for his defense of the legitimacy of the Ebola virus disease threat and its impact on communities, according to a statement from the UDSP.

“They beat him and set the house ablaze,” said Karondwa’s granddaughter, Sagesse Kavira, during the funeral proceedings reported by The Associated Press.

The party emphasized that Karondwa was “an innocent victim” for openly affirming the existence and dangers of Ebola, though investigators have not yet identified the perpetrators or their motives.

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The killing underscores the escalating violence against humanitarian workers in the DRC, where the continent’s largest Ebola outbreak—currently its 17th—has claimed over 8,000 lives from more than 20,000 cases. The Bundibugyo strain driving the epidemic, which lacks available vaccines or treatments, is spreading across seven provinces, including Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Sud Ubangi, and Tshopo, with Ituri remaining the hardest hit.

WHO officials attribute the outbreak’s severity to persistent distrust among populations displaced by decades of conflict, who often dismiss Ebola as a government fabrication and refuse to report symptoms. This skepticism has severely hampered response efforts, particularly in conflict zones where rebel control complicates access for medical teams.

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, warned that eastern DRC faces “a catastrophic collision of disease and conflict” as both crises deepen, creating conditions that endanger health interventions and community wellbeing.

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