PRETORIA, February 7. /TASS/. A cholera outbreak has been recorded in the province of North Kivu in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement.
"Close to 600 suspected cases of cholera and 14 deaths were reported from North Kivu between January 1 and 27," the statement reads.
According to the WHO, the water supply in the city of Goma, which was seized by rebels from the March 23 Movement last week, "was disrupted and has only partially resumed, leading people to use water from the lake, and heightening the risk of cholera spread."
"The threat of infectious diseases has multiplied. Cholera, malaria, measles, meningitis, mpox and tuberculosis are among the infectious threats in the area," the WHO notes.
As many as 128 of 142 mpox patients have fled from hospitals amid military activities in the country. WHO personnel are now trying to find them. Meanwhile, mpox vaccination resumed in North Kivu on February 4 after a ten-day pause.
The WHO points out that until recently, "Goma was home to over 2 million people, including 700 000 people displaced by this crisis." "These people have had to flee yet again, in search of safety. They are in temporary settlements, with their health and safety at risk," the organization notes.
Goma is currently controlled by the Rwanda-backed rebels. Earlier, they formed a new regional administration led by a governor.