A new, unidentified illness has been reported in the northwestern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is buffeted by multiple public health and humanitarian crises, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Wednesday.

Two clusters of cases and deaths related to the unidentified disease were reported in two health zones of the DRC’s Equateur Province, the WHO said in a report.

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By February 15, the WHO said, 431 cases and 45 deaths had been reported.

The first cluster of cases and deaths were reported in January in Boloko Village, in Bolomba Health Zone. Preliminary investigations traced the outbreak’s origin to three community deaths among children under five years old, who died after developing a fever, headache, diarrhea, and fatigue, which later progressed to hemorrhage.

There were reports that the children had consumed a bat carcass prior to the onset of signs and symptoms.

The second cluster was reported in February in Bomate Village, in Basankusu Health Zone.

“The outbreak, which has seen cases rise rapidly within days, poses a significant public health threat,” the report said, noting that the disease progresses rapidly, with nearly half of the deaths occurring within 48 hours of symptom onset in the Basankusu Health Zone, and an exceptionally high case fatality rate in the Bolomba Health Zone.

Though no epidemiological links have been established between the cases in the two affected health zones.

Possibilities of malaria, viral hemorrhagic fevers, food or waterborne poisoning, typhoid fever, and meningitis are being considered, but Ebola and Marburg viruses have been ruled out, according to testing, the WHO said, Xinhua news agency reported.

In late 2024, the DRC’s southwestern province of Kwango was also hit by a “mysterious disease,” which was later identified as severe malaria aggravated by malnutrition. A government report issued in January 2025 said 2,774 cases and 77 deaths were recorded.

An escalating armed conflict in the DRC’s North Kivu and South Kivu provinces has made an already dire humanitarian crisis even worse. There have been reports of looting, attacks on aid workers, and road blockages that severely disrupted relief efforts.

The WHO called for immediate action to secure humanitarian access, restore critical infrastructure, and ensure the delivery of medical and food aid, stressing that enhanced public health surveillance remains essential to prevent future crises from deteriorating further.