The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has already caused 500 deaths.

Omissions

• The claimed figure of 500 deaths as of 8 July 2026 could not be matched to any official source; the closest official data point found is 181 confirmed deaths as of 13 June 2026, which is a 'confirmed deaths only' metric and predates the session by nearly four weeks.
• Official confirmed-death counts substantially understate the true toll: UN News reports that most of the more than 1,900 people who died in the DRC outbreak by August 2026 never made it to a treatment centre, so a total of roughly 500 deaths by early July 2026 is plausible but not directly verifiable from the sources found.
• The 2026 DRC outbreak (Bundibugyo species) is confirmed real by WHO, CDC and ECDC, but several sources describing later phases (ECDC situation update of 28 July 2026, UN News of August 2026) were published after the session date and describe data the MEP could not have known.
• The MEP also cited '1,500 infections' and 'almost twenty' health workers dead; the cumulative case count for early July 2026 and the number of health-worker fatalities could not be verified from the sources found.

Sources

• PrimaryECDC (European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control)Ebola disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, caused by the Bundibugyo virus; as of 28 July 2026, 20 confirmed cases including two deaths had been reported by the Ministry of Health in Uganda.
• PrimaryWorld Health Organization (WHO)An Ebola outbreak was confirmed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Uganda in May 2026; the Bundibugyo species of Ebola involved is one for which (response measures are being implemented).
• PrimaryUS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)This Ebola outbreak (Bundibugyo virus, DRC and Uganda) surpassed 1,000 confirmed cases within 40 days of response activation.
• SecondaryReliefWeb — report on Mongbwalu and Rwampara facing Ebola (epidemiological evolution, June 2026)As of 13 June 2026, health authorities reported 782 confirmed cases and 181 confirmed deaths in the DRC Ebola outbreak (Mongbwalu and Rwampara, Ituri), an increase of 267 cases (+51.8%) over the previous count.
• SecondaryUN NewsMore than 1,900 people have died in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Ebola outbreak – and most of them never made it to a treatment centre.
• SecondaryLe MondeQualitative report from Mongbwalu, epicentre of the Ebola epidemic in the DRC: 'deaths in cascade' and the terrible fear of contamination (29 June 2026).