The latest Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has killed 2,011 people out of 4,381 confirmed cases, according to figures released by Congolese health authorities.

The outbreak, which was declared on May 15, has spread through conflict-affected areas in eastern and northeastern DRC, with Ituri Province identified as the initial epicentre. Health officials believe the virus had already been circulating for several weeks before the outbreak was officially declared.

The current outbreak is the country's 17th Ebola surge and is approaching the scale of the 2018–2020 outbreak, which killed nearly 2,300 people from about 3,500 recorded cases.

The current fatality rate stands at about 45.9 per cent, according to Congolese health authorities. Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said authorities had not yet reached the peak of the outbreak but expected to bring the spread under control within three months.

The response has been hampered by insecurity caused by armed groups, weak health infrastructure and mistrust among some communities. The World Health Organisation's regional director for Africa, Mohamed Yakub Janabi, said only about 30 per cent of infected people were being identified, while many others were reportedly dying without reaching health facilities.

Congolese virologist Jean-Jacques Muyembe, one of the scientists who helped discover Ebola in 1976, criticised the response as slow and ineffective, citing problems with national coordination.

The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no specifically approved vaccine. However, WHO vaccine experts have recommended a large-scale human trial to determine whether Ervebo, the approved vaccine used against the more common Zaire strain, can provide protection against Bundibugyo Ebola.

The Gavi vaccine alliance has a stockpile of 500,000 Ervebo doses, some of which are already available in the DRC for the planned trials. Two potential Bundibugyo vaccines are also undergoing early-stage human trials.