Agence France-Presse: DR Congo Ebola epidemic spreads as second Goma patient dies, third case is confirmed
“An Ebola epidemic in eastern DR Congo continues to spread, with two deaths and another diagnosis reported this week in the city of Goma. Rwanda closed its frontier with the country on Thursday over fears of the virus. Authorities have also quarantined 15 people in a previously unaffected province…” (8/1).

Becker’s Hospital Review: Ebola by the numbers: Agencies release joint statement at outbreak’s 1-year anniversary
“Aug. 1 marks one year since the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s government declared an Ebola outbreak in North Kivu province, and the country still needs urgent aid from the international community, according to a joint statement from the World Health Organization, the United Nations, UNICEF, and the World Food Programme released July 31…” (Kommers, 7/31).

CIDRAP News: On eve of 1-year mark, WHO calls Ebola in DRC ‘relentless’
“Employing an effective vaccine, conducting extensive surveillance, and building community trust have all gone a long way in limiting the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). But 1 year after the first cases were identified in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) said [Wednesday] at a press conference that the fight against the virus must continue. WHO officials called the disease ‘relentless and devastating’…” (Soucheray, 7/31).

Wall Street Journal: Rwanda Shuts Border With Congo Over Ebola Outbreak
“Rwanda shut its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday, escalating its response to an Ebola outbreak that has killed more than 1,800 people since the first case was discovered a year ago. The government took the decision, which was quickly condemned by the Congolese, after a third case of the virus was discovered in Goma, a city of 2 million on the border with Rwanda…” (Bariyo/Steinhauser, 8/1).

Washington Post: A year on, Congo’s Ebola outbreak is only getting worse
“…It is Congo’s 10th outbreak, and the world’s second-worst, trailing only the epidemic that killed more than 11,000 across West Africa between 2014 and 2016. If just this July were considered on its own, it would be the fourth-biggest outbreak in history, with more than 350 cases confirmed. … The [Rwandan] border was reopened in the afternoon, after loud protests from the Congolese government…” (Bearak, 8/1).

Additional coverage of the DRC Ebola outbreak and response is available from Agence France-Presse, Al Jazeera, BBC News, Becker’s Hospital Review, Bloomberg, CNN, Devex, Financial Times (2), The Guardian (2), NPR, Reuters, U.N. News, VICE News, and VOA News.