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Ebola Recoveries Bring Signs of Hope in DRC as Suspected Cases Emerge Outside Africa

People seen in front of the Evangelical Medical Centre (CEM), a new facility as part of the Ebola outbreak response in Bunia, Congo, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP)
People seen in front of the Evangelical Medical Centre (CEM), a new facility as part of the Ebola outbreak response in Bunia, Congo, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP)
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Ebola Recoveries Bring Signs of Hope in DRC as Suspected Cases Emerge Outside Africa

People seen in front of the Evangelical Medical Centre (CEM), a new facility as part of the Ebola outbreak response in Bunia, Congo, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP)
People seen in front of the Evangelical Medical Centre (CEM), a new facility as part of the Ebola outbreak response in Bunia, Congo, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP)

Four nurses who were being treated for Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus have been discharged from a hospital in Bunia in the Democratic Republic of Congo after recovering from the disease, the World Health Organization said on Sunday.

More recoveries are expected, especially when people are diagnosed early and able to access care, and as the response to the outbreak intensifies.

A laboratory worker had also recovered earlier this week, the agency said, bringing the total number of people ‌who have recovered from ‌the virus to five.

However, suspected cases are being looked ‌into ⁠in Brazil and ⁠Italy tied to travel to affected nations.

The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the country has increased to 282, with 42 deaths, after 19 new positive test results were recorded, according to data distributed by the communications ministry.

Earlier this month the WHO declared the outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo version of the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern, although it does not meet the criteria of ⁠a pandemic emergency.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, while on a Saturday visit ‌to Bunia -- the capital of the eastern Congolese province ‌of Ituri -- noted that although there currently is no licensed vaccine or treatment for Ebola caused ‌by the Bundibugyo virus, “it is not without hope," as it can be survived with ‌good medical care.

SUSPECTED CASES OUTSIDE AFRICA

The outbreak -- the 17th in Congo and the third-largest since Ebola was discovered half a century ago -- is outpacing the global response, which got off to a late start.

"The risk of regional spread is already happening," Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centres for ‌Disease Control and Prevention, said in an FT op-ed published on Sunday.

It said that over 1,100 suspected cases are being ⁠investigated. In Brazil, a ⁠man with a suspected case of Ebola in Sao Paulo tested positive for meningitis.

Another suspected case emerged in Rio de Janeiro, where the patient tested positive for malaria, local health authorities said on Sunday.

In neither case does the diagnosis rule out the possibility of Ebola, they said.

In the Sao Paulo case, a man from the Democratic Republic of Congo presented with a fever after recently visiting the African country, while in Rio the patient had recently traveled to Uganda.

In Italy, protocols for a suspected case of Ebola were triggered in Sardinia's capital Cagliari for a man who had flown back from Congo on Saturday with some symptoms, but the health ministry said early on Monday that he had tested negative.

"We confirm that the risk (of Ebola) in Italy remains very low," the ministry said.

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World

US, UK and 12 Other Nations Reaffirm 2016 Ruling Invalidating China's Claims in South China Sea

FILE - In this image made from video provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, a Chinese coast guard ship uses water cannon on a Philippine resupply vessel Unaizah May 4 as it approaches Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on March 23, 2024. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP, File)
FILE - In this image made from video provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, a Chinese coast guard ship uses water cannon on a Philippine resupply vessel Unaizah May 4 as it approaches Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on March 23, 2024. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP, File)
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US, UK and 12 Other Nations Reaffirm 2016 Ruling Invalidating China's Claims in South China Sea

FILE - In this image made from video provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, a Chinese coast guard ship uses water cannon on a Philippine resupply vessel Unaizah May 4 as it approaches Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on March 23, 2024. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP, File)
FILE - In this image made from video provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, a Chinese coast guard ship uses water cannon on a Philippine resupply vessel Unaizah May 4 as it approaches Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on March 23, 2024. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP, File)

The United States, United Kingdom and a dozen other Western and Asian countries reasserted on Sunday that China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea are illegal based on a 2016 arbitration ruling.

A joint statement issued by the nations said they rejected “destabilizing” actions in the disputed waters that threaten regional peace.

The announcement commemorated a July 12, 2016, arbitration ruling by a tribunal established in The Hague under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, saying the landmark decision is “a significant milestone and is final, legally binding and definitive.”

China refused to join the arbitration initiated by the Philippines in 2013 after a tense standoff in the contested waters a year earlier that ended with Beijing effectively seizing a disputed shoal.

Beijing rejected the 2016 ruling and continues to defend its claims to virtually the entire sea passage, a key global trade route that has long been feared as one of Asia’ most active flashpoints. The areas has been the scene of repeated territorial standoffs involving China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

“We reaffirm the Arbitral Tribunal’s decision that there is no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea, including those based on `historic rights,’” the statement said.

The arbitration tribunal largely decided in favor of the Philippines, ruling that under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, “there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources” in the South China Sea outside of its regular territorial areas recognized under the convention.

The convention, largely regarded as the treaty governing the world’s oceans and seas, took effect in 1994 and has been ratified by more than 170 countries and parties, including China and the Philippines.

In addition to the US and Britain, the other countries listed in Sunday's statement included the Philippines, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Italy, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia.

“We reiterate our strong opposition to any destabilizing or unilateral actions including by force or coercion that threaten peace and stability in the region,” The Associated Press quoted them as saying.

The nations stressed “our strong opposition to the use of coast guard, military and maritime militia forces to harass, obstruct, intimidate lawful operations by other states at sea or in the air and in so doing endanger the safety of personnel and fishermen and seriously degrade regional peace and security.”

“Freedom of navigation and overflight as well as other internationally lawful uses of the sea as reflected in UNCLOS” must be upheld, the countries said, adding that the territorial disputes should be resolved peacefully based on the 1982 UN convention.

World

Typhoon Bavi Brings Strong Winds, Rain to China as More Than 2 Million Evacuated

A woman walks past a vehicle knocked over by winds from Typhoon Bavi in Wenling, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on July 12, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP)
A woman walks past a vehicle knocked over by winds from Typhoon Bavi in Wenling, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on July 12, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP)
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Typhoon Bavi Brings Strong Winds, Rain to China as More Than 2 Million Evacuated

A woman walks past a vehicle knocked over by winds from Typhoon Bavi in Wenling, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on July 12, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP)
A woman walks past a vehicle knocked over by winds from Typhoon Bavi in Wenling, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on July 12, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP)

Typhoon Bavi weakened to a severe tropical storm after making landfall in eastern China's Zhejiang province but was still bringing strong winds and heavy rain to eastern China on Sunday.

It weakened early Sunday with maximum sustained winds of around 101 kph (63 mph) near its center, according to China’s national weather center, and is expected to move northwestward across eastern China.

Bavi passed north of Taiwan on Saturday but did not make a direct landfall, The Associated Press reported.

Taiwan’s fire department said at least 134 people across the island were injured as of 7 a.m. Sunday, some sustaining injuries while riding motorcycles or bicycles under strong winds or due to slippery road surfaces.

Strong winds and heavy rain are expected to impact many eastern Chinese cities on Sunday, China’s National Meteorological Center said.

Shanghai evacuated more than 290,000 people from at-risk areas, state media reported. Authorities in Zhejiang evacuated about 2.2 million residents, while Fujian province evacuated over 180,000 people.

Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport and Hongqiao International Airport were expected to cancel around 653 inbound and outbound flights due to Bavi, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

In the coastal city of Yueqing in Zhejiang province, more than 1,300 trees were toppled, including at least 700 uprooted, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

World

Shooting Near Toronto Street Festival Kills 2 People

Police officers secure the scene after a deadly shooting at a salsa-themed street festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July 11, 2026. Picture taken using a mobile phone. REUTERS/Cole Burston
Police officers secure the scene after a deadly shooting at a salsa-themed street festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July 11, 2026. Picture taken using a mobile phone. REUTERS/Cole Burston
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Shooting Near Toronto Street Festival Kills 2 People

Police officers secure the scene after a deadly shooting at a salsa-themed street festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July 11, 2026. Picture taken using a mobile phone. REUTERS/Cole Burston
Police officers secure the scene after a deadly shooting at a salsa-themed street festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July 11, 2026. Picture taken using a mobile phone. REUTERS/Cole Burston

A shooting near a Toronto street festival killed two men and wounded several other people Saturday evening, police said, adding that what initially prompted an active-shooter warning was an exchange of gunfire between two people targeting each other.

Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said investigators recovered two firearms after the shooting that was reported at 8:12 p.m. near St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue, where the Salsa on St. Clair festival was underway.

No suspect or suspects had been arrested by the time of a late-night news conference, where Barredo confirmed both of the deceased victims were men, The Associated Press reported.

Officers initially urged the public to avoid the area before later announcing the scene had been secured.

“There was some concern about an active shooter. That turned out not to be the case,” Barredo said. But the two gunmen involved in the shooting “indiscriminately put vast numbers of people in danger.”

A large police presence remained around the festival, an annual celebration of Latin American culture that draws thousands of people to Toronto’s St. Clair West neighborhood for live music, dancing, food and cultural performances.

“I’m deeply disturbed and angry about this reckless and irresponsible act of violence right in the middle of a festival attended by families,” Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said in a social media post that his thoughts were with the victims, families and others affected by the shooting.

“I am devastated by the senseless violence at the Salsa on St. Clair Festival that has claimed two lives and injured others,” Ford said.

Toronto, Canada’s largest city, is among North America’s safest major cities. Fatal shootings, particularly those involving multiple victims in public places, are relatively rare.

“Toronto is one of the safest cities in the world but we are 3 million people and unfortunately we are not immune,” Barredo said.