France confirms first Ebola case as doctor returns from Congo’s Bundibugyo outbreak

First case on French territory

Health authorities in France confirmed on Wednesday the identification of a first positive case of Ebola virus disease in the country. The patient is a doctor who had been working on a humanitarian mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the current epicentre of a large outbreak. According to the health ministry, the individual was immediately transferred to a specialised hospital and placed in isolation; their condition is described as stable. Contacts are being traced, and those identified will be required to self‑isolate for 21 days.

The ministry confirms today the identification of a first positive case of Ebola virus disease on the national territory.

The ministry added that the diagnosis was made in metropolitan France, though the exact location is being withheld for medical confidentiality. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said he was monitoring the situation very closely.

The Congo outbreak

DRC has been battling an Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there is currently no licensed vaccine. The virus was likely circulating in the east of the country for weeks before it was officially declared on 15 May. Since then, more than 1,000 people have been infected and at least 267 have died, according to the World Health Organization. The WHO noted that this represents the largest number of confirmed cases recorded in the first month of any Ebola epidemic.

The transmission is accelerating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo despite strengthened health response measures.

The vast majority of infections, over 90%, are concentrated in the eastern province of Ituri. Cases have also been detected in the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu, where the M23 rebel group controls significant territory, complicating outbreak control. Neighbouring Uganda has reported 20 infected people and two deaths.

Risk assessment and response

French health authorities stressed that the risk of transmission is considered low, and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has assessed the risk for European residents and for travellers visiting active zones as low, and very low for the general European population. The ministry pointed to a dedicated monitoring system put in place for humanitarian workers returning from DRC. An investigation is underway to trace anyone who may have had close contact with the patient.

Previous imported cases

Although two Ebola patients were treated on French soil during the 2014 West African epidemic, both had been diagnosed before arriving in the country. The current case is therefore the first in‑country diagnosis. Outside DRC, a U.S. citizen who contracted Ebola was treated in a German hospital and discharged earlier this month after the virus was no longer detected.