Two Red Cross workers were seriously wounded Oct. 2 after they were attacked by community members while performing safe burials of deceased Ebola patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo's northeastern city of Butembo, according to The Guardian.
Here are four things to know:
1. The incident represented the most violent attack on Red Cross workers since the outbreak began in Aug. 1, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said in a statement cited by The Guardian. The U.N. Security Council on Oct. 3 requested an immediate end to hostilities in the country.
"While we categorically denounce the attack on our colleagues, we understand the fear and frustration that many communities in North Kivu feel right now," Dr. Fatoumata
Nafo-Traoré, IFRC regional director for Africa, said in a statement cited by The Guardian. "People are scared and there are many rumors circulating that only serve to heighten the sense of fear and distrust."
2. Safe burials for Ebola victims help prevent disease transmission. The Red Cross has performed about 162 such burials in North Kivu since August.
3. Security issues posed by armed militia groups stationed in the Congo's outbreak area — near the country's border with Uganda — have been a major obstacle for health workers.
"We are very concerned about the potential for the virus to spread into Uganda, but also into Rwanda, South Sudan and Burundi. We are working very closely with those governments on operational readiness for Ebola," Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO's director general, said during a U.N. Security Council meeting Oct. 3, according to The Guardian.
4. Congo's health ministry has confirmed 130 Ebola cases and 74 deaths linked to the outbreak.