Teacher badly injured in attack as mistrust of outbreak responders deepens

Ben Farmer

Africa Correspondent

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Ben is based in South Africa and also works on The Telegraph's Global Health Security team. He spent five years in Kabul covering the Afghanistan war, five years as Defence Correspondent in London, and four years in Islamabad

Published 26 October 2026 4:25pm GMT

A nurse was killed and a teacher badly injured in a mob attack after being accused of spreading Ebola in the water supply in Congo.

The unnamed victims were set upon in Bafwasende territory of Tshopo province after a group of young people accused them of being responsible for the outbreak of the haemorrhagic fever.

The nurse was killed outright and the teacher, who local media reported was close to the health worker, only survived after being rescued by police.

The World Health Organization (WHO) condemned the attack, which is only the latest incident of health workers being attacked by suspicious, scared or angry…