Congo's Ebola Outbreak Passes 11,000 Cases as Kenya Starts 42-Day Countdown to Ebola-Free

Congo's Ebola outbreak has passed 11,000 confirmed cases, making it the country's worst on record, official figures showed on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. The National Institute of Public Health reported 11,042 infections and 5,387 deaths, with about 2,990 people recovered. It is the 17th outbreak in Congo's history. It was officially declared in May, though experts believe it began weeks or months earlier in northeastern Ituri, and armed conflict is hampering the response. The previous worst Congo outbreak, from 2018 to 2020, killed nearly 2,300 of 3,500 cases. Ebola has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa over the last 50 years. Separately, Kenya discharged its last Ebola patient and began a 42-day countdown to being declared Ebola-free, provided no new cases are recorded.

Newsmax, on the right, leads with the Congo figure, saying the government reported it on Wednesday. It calls the number stark and describes a country grappling with the relentless spread of the virus, so the emphasis is on severity. The New York Times, on the left, leads with Kenya's countdown, and describes it as further evidence that African countries have mostly prevented community transmission and isolated the few cases that came in from Congo. The two agree that Congo's outbreak is serious and that other African countries are involved, but they differ in focus. Newsmax stresses the scale of the crisis, while the Times stresses containment elsewhere. The Hindu largely matches the Congo-centered coverage, adding the death toll, recoveries, the conflict and historical comparisons. BBC News matches the Kenya angle.