Pope Leo XIV urges action on DR Congo Ebola outbreak

Key facts

Pope Leo XIV called for an international response to a deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The available report does not state how many Ebola cases or deaths have been recorded.

No details were provided about which areas of DR Congo are affected or what specific assistance the pope requested.

The pope also remembered communities in central Italy ahead of the 10th anniversary of a magnitude-6.0 earthquake.

That earthquake struck parts of Lazio, Umbria and Marche and killed around 300 people.

Why it matters

The appeal places international attention on the Ebola outbreak in DR Congo and calls for a response beyond the country. However, the evidence available does not identify the outbreak’s scale, the affected locations, the assistance required or whether any governments or organisations have committed support.

Pope Leo XIV has called for an international response to a deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to a report published by Africanews on 24 August 2026.

The available report gives no figures for infections or deaths and does not identify the provinces or communities affected. It also does not specify what form the requested international response should take, or whether the appeal was directed at particular governments, health agencies or humanitarian organisations.

No information was supplied about measures already under way in DR Congo, including treatment, surveillance or other outbreak-response work. It is therefore not yet possible from the available evidence to assess the scale of the emergency or the status of efforts to contain it.

The pope also remembered communities in central Italy ahead of the 10th anniversary of a magnitude-6.0 earthquake. The disaster struck areas of Lazio, Umbria and Marche and killed around 300 people.

The two messages drew attention to communities facing a current health emergency in DR Congo and to Italian communities marking a deadly past disaster. Further details are still needed on the Ebola outbreak, including confirmed case and death totals, its geographic reach and any international assistance mobilised in response to the pope’s appeal.