Red Cross volunteers under attack as Ebola Outbreak deepens in DR Congo

The Red Cross on Friday denounced an attack on its volunteers earlier this week during a burial in the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The attack happened on Monday in Bunia, in northeastern DRC, injuring several people as they performed a "safe and dignified burial", the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) said in a statement.

"We condemn this unacceptable act and express our solidarity and support for the affected volunteers and their families," added the statement, signed on behalf of the IFRC, the DRC Red Cross, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

"Attacks against volunteers not only endanger lives, they also undermine efforts to contain the outbreak and protect communities." The government in Kinshasa declared an outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of the deadly haemorrhagic fever on May 15. No vaccine or specific treatment is available, and according to the latest World Health Organization figures, there have been 381 cases, including 64 deaths, in the DRC alone.

Ebola is currently present in three provinces in the northeastern DRC, as well as in neighbouring Uganda, where there have been 19 recorded cases, including two deaths.

Empty medical tents have been set on fire and members of local communities have intruded into hospitals to demand the return of Ebola victims' bodies in recent weeks in Ituri province, of which Bunia is the capital.

Previous outbreaks have seen mistrust between some locals and medical staff. The WHO and the African Union's public health agency, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, on Friday announced the launch of a joint $518-million plan to tackle the outbreak.