A six-year-old child infected with Ebola who was abducted from a treatment centre in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been found safe, according to local health authorities. The patient was taken from a clinic in Beni, North Kivu province, on Tuesday evening by unidentified assailants. WHO officials confirmed the child's return to medical care on Wednesday, without specifying the circumstances of the release.
The UK Foreign Office has stated that British medical teams are on standby to assist with the containment effort, reflecting the international concern over the potential spread of the virus in a region already struggling with conflict and displacement. The child's disappearance had sparked fears of a new transmission chain, but authorities are now confident that the immediate risk is contained. The outbreak in North Kivu has so far infected over 200 people, with a mortality rate of approximately 40 per cent.
British teams are prepared to deploy if requested by the Congolese government or WHO.
