BUTEMBO, Democratic Republic of the Congo — A senior official of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s ruling party was beaten to death on Sunday, September 27, 2026, after appearing on a radio programme to raise awareness about an ongoing Ebola outbreak.
According to a statement from the Union for Democracy and Social Progress federation in Butembo, Okay News reports that Marie-Celestin Karondwa, the acting president of the UDPS federal executive committee in Butembo, was attacked after participating in a radio broadcast on Ebola prevention.
Unidentified attackers beat Karondwa, stole his belongings, and set his house on fire. He subsequently died from the injuries sustained during the assault.
The UDPS stated that Karondwa was targeted after defending the political party’s position on the existence of Ebola and the danger the virus poses to the population.
The fatal assault follows a series of attacks on healthcare workers and treatment centres, which experts have linked to misinformation about Ebola and distrust of health responders. On Saturday, September 26, 2026, armed men attacked a hand-washing checkpoint in the nearby Beni territory, killing at least one person and injuring several others, according to a local civil society group.
The current Ebola outbreak, which was first announced on May 15, 2026, is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no approved treatment or vaccine. The DRC Ministry of Public Health has reported 8,067 infections and 3,901 deaths across seven provinces.
Data from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the current outbreak has exceeded the 2014–2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, which infected more than 28,600 people and killed more than 11,000.
