Angry Mobs Are Attacking Health Workers in Congo. It Will Only Make the Ebola Outbreak Worse

Dozens of attacks against medical facilities and teams have taken place since the outbreak began, primarily due to fear and mistrust within local communities, health care workers tell TIME. They warn that this violence escalates risk for both the professionals and the infected people in their care—and it will undoubtedly raise the death rate. Crowds of people—including the relatives of patients—stormed Ituri’s Nyakunde Hospital, throwing stones and damaging its perimeter fence on July 15, according to Reuters. Ituri is the province at the epicenter of the outbreak, where about 90% of cases are concentrated. “Many of the attacks have been carried out by angry mobs who have stormed treatment centers or targeted response teams in the field,” Dr. Pierre Akilimali, incident manager for the Ebola response at the National Public Health Institute of the DRC, said at a press briefing in Bunia on July 18. “It makes frontline personnel feel insecure and it puts them in an uncomfortable position to perform their duties,” he said, adding that they face both “infectious risks [and] security risks.”Locals told the Associated Press (AP) that health care workers were seen last week fleeing more rem...