{"id":12788,"date":"2026-05-18T15:37:34","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T10:07:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/?p=12788"},"modified":"2026-05-18T15:37:34","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T10:07:34","slug":"who-global-alert-rare-ebola-outbreak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/who-global-alert-rare-ebola-outbreak\/","title":{"rendered":"WHO Raises Global Alarm Over Rare Ebola Virus Outbreak"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A new strain of the Ebola virus, dubbed the Bundibugyo strain, has been spreading outside of Africa and has infected people across both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). There have been dozens of deaths and hundreds of suspected infections since the outbreak took place, with fears about its international spread. In contrast, the less frequently seen Bundibugyo strain of Ebola does not have a specific treatment or vaccine approved. Insufficient health care infrastructure, frequent residential mobility and the lack of stability in the region could exacerbate the situation, said WHO officials. To prevent any further spread, global health organisations are now focusing on surveillance, containment, rapid testing, and coordination with other countries.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Key Highlights of Rare Ebola Virus Outbreak<\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Ebola virus outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organisation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">It is a rare outbreak of the Ebola virus\u2014the Bundibugyo strain.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Initial observations of cases were made in Ituri Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Uganda has also had confirmed cases of Ebola arising from travel across its borders.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">WHO claimed that there were hundreds of suspected infections and dozens of deaths.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">At this time, there is no licensed vaccination or anti-viral drugs for the Bundibugyo strain.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ebola is transmitted via direct contact with Ebola-infected body fluids.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Signs of infection consist of fever, vomiting, bleeding, weakness and severe dehydration.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Among the affected groups in the outbreak are healthcare workers.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Underreporting could make the outbreak even bigger than it currently is, the WHO said.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">International spread, due to porous borders and population flow.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Emergency personnel and resources are being sent out to impacted areas.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Strengthening of infection prevention and surveillance systems.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">WHO recommended that countries not enact needless restrictions on travel or trade.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The outbreak underscores the need for global health preparedness and response initiatives.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Since 1976, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has had several Ebola outbreaks.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Containment is challenging due to the humanitarian crisis and active armed conflict in the situation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Reducing the risk of transmission is through public awareness campaigns.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">African health officials are working with international agencies to control the outbreak.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Topics engaging health organisations, disease and global governance, will benefit from the development.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">PYQs Related to WHO, Ebola, and Global Health<\/span><\/h2>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Exam Name &amp; Year<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Question<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Options<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Answer<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">UPSC Prelims 2020<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The headquarters of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is located in which city?<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. Paris B. Geneva C. New York D. Vienna<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">B. Geneva<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">SSC CGL 2022<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ebola virus disease primarily spreads through which method?<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. Airborne transmission only B. Mosquito bites C. Contact with infected bodily fluids D. Contaminated soil<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">C. Contact with infected bodily fluids<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">UPSC Prelims 2019<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">WHO is a specialised agency of which organisation?<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. IMF B. World Bank C. United Nations D. WTO<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">C. United Nations<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">SSC CHSL 2023<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Which continent has been most affected by Ebola outbreaks?<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. Europe B. Asia C. Africa D. Australia<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">C. Africa<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">State PCS 2021<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">What does PHEIC stand for in global health terminology?<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. Public Health Emergency of International Concern B. Public Health Event in Countries C. Primary Health Emergency International Council D. Public Hygiene Emergency Infection Control<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A. Public Health Emergency of International Concern<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-94a3b5b elementor-widget elementor-widget-theme-post-title elementor-page-title elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"94a3b5b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"theme-post-title.default\">\n<p class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\" style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/cbi-launched-ai-chatbot-abhay\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CBI Launched AI Chatbot \u2018Abhay\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Conclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Ebola outbreak in central Africa has put global health security and international cooperation in terms of managing infectious diseases firmly back on the global agenda. WHO&#8217;s global health emergency declaration is a stark reminder that this situation isn&#8217;t to be taken lightly or poses a threat to domestic borders. The few vaccines and treatments available are not approved against the Bundibugyo strain, and there is also a need for prompt surveillance, early detection and infection control measures. The outbreak also highlights the difficulties for health systems in areas of conflict. The knowledge of institutions such as the WHO, disease outbreaks, and the emergency mechanisms in the world is extremely significant for general and current affairs, as well as competitive exams.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new strain of the Ebola virus, dubbed the Bundibugyo strain, has been spreading outside of Africa and has infected people across both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). There have been dozens of deaths and hundreds of suspected infections since the outbreak took place, with fears [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":12789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12788"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12790,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12788\/revisions\/12790"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.class24.study\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}