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GRAP-1 curbs imposed in Delhi-NCR as air quality deteriorates to ‘poor’

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has invoked Stage-I of GRAP after Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) rose to 238 at 10 am on Wednesday, as per multiple reports.

This chart shows just how rapidly Ebola is spreading

The most recent Ebola epidemic has killed thousands in Congo. A few cases have spilled over to its neighboring countries, including Kenya and Uganda. | Lucas Mukasa/Anadolu via Getty Images The Ebola virus is spreading at an unprecedented rate this year.  In the first five months since the outbreak began in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported 9,415 confirmed cases and 4,536 deaths in the country. While the virus has remained relatively contained by the DRC’s borders, case counts in neighboring Kenya and Uganda are also climbing (albeit more slowly). There are 20 confirmed cases in Uganda and eight in Kenya, and much of central and eastern Africa has tightened its borders.  The last major Ebola epidemic of this scale began in 2014 and continued through 2016 in West Africa. Over that period, it ultimately killed more than 11,000 people throughout West Africa. Nearly four years later, a smaller outbreak plagued Congo in its North Kivu region, leading to 2,229 deaths before it was contained.  The 2026 crisis hasn’t yet reached the same levels as the 2014 outbreak, but the speed of its spread is far greater.  As the chart below shows, around 150 days after the outbreak was declared, 2,599 Ebola cases had been reported in the 2014 West African epidemic. At the same time point this year, the number of cases came to 8,978 and has continued to climb.  View Link There is no straightforward explanation for this rapid spread One of the reasons the latest epidemic has been so difficult to slow down can be traced back to the fact that it’s a different viral strain — known as Bundibugyo — than the ones behind previous epidemics.   The Bundibugyo virus comes from the same family as the Ebola virus that caused the 2014 West Africa and 2018 Congo epidemics, causing the fatal fevers associated with Ebola. But the rare strain is different enough that it doesn’t respond to the same medical solutions. While the Zaire virus led to vaccines and treatment to mitigate the spread, we still don’t have a vaccine for Bundibugyo.  That doesn’t mean Bundibugyo is entirely novel, though. The 2026 outbreak is the third outbreak related to the Bundibugyo viral strain: In 2007, Uganda faced a minor outbreak, and the eastern province of Congo, which is now the epicenter of the epidemic, saw a handful of cases in 2012.  Luckily, these two outbreaks were contained in a span of months, largely due to efforts by the country’s Ministry of Health and international aid partnerships with the WHO, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and international humanitarian organizations such as the UN Children’s Fund and Red Cross. More than a decade later, these efforts have been substantially curbed by USAID cuts. Tracing requires physical testing capacity: the tests themselves, health workers, and protective equipment for those treating suspected cases. Reduced access to such resources is especially dangerous with strains like Bundibugyo – in the absence of an effective vaccine, tracing the spread of disease and isolating potential disease contacts is especially important.  But cuts to aid, which covers disease surveillance efforts, made it more difficult to identify this year’s Bundibugyo outbreak until it was too late, creating a “critical four-week detection gap between the onset of symptoms of the presumed index case…and the laboratory confirmation of the outbreak,” according to a WHO situation report from May.  In August, the United States aimed to close at least some part of the vacuum it left, providing an additional $242 million to its $23 million original pledge in May.  Aside from international efforts, DRC faces the added layer of internal conflict and humanitarian crisis. The eastern provinces, including Ituri, have experienced years of conflict that have weakened the public infrastructure, including the healthcare system. Last year, nearly 25 percent of Congolese people faced food insecurity, and 4.5 million children were clinically malnourished, creating a population especially vulnerable to disease. The violence has also overwhelmed hospitals and displaced millions, disrupting the public health response, especially as mistrust in health authorities also runs rampant.  Even as emergency trials for a vaccine are underway, many of the factors that have facilitated the rapid spread may make treatment and outreach still more difficult. It’s hard to predict when the current outbreak will be handled, and how many more people will be affected before it does.

Ukraine talks: What progress after US envoy met with Zelensky?

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is headed to Russia today to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin for peace talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, on his end, met with the US official in Norway Tuesday. What progress has been made in Oslo? Ophélie Jacobson explains.

Trump lost control and ordered me to be ‘quiet’ in the Oval Office. Then it got personal

What was supposed to be an announcement on fraud quickly devolved into Trump vs The Independent. Andrew Feinberg details how it all happened in the Oval Office

Politics latest: Jackdaw gasfield drilling won’t cut your bills, energy secretary warns despite Burnham’s approval

Miatta Fahnbulleh has promised greater energy security, but told Britons not to expect cheaper bills this winter

Boston school custodian donates kidney to save colleague’s brother

Pope Leo addresses crowds at St. Peter's Square days after cancer surgery

Pope Leo had the lower lobe of his right lung removed in surgery eight days ago

Some websites may go down as huge internet vulnerabilities found, cyber agency warns

PHP underpins expansive sections of the internet

Putin hosts Trump envoy for new Ukraine peace talks, frees US citizen held in Russia

Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired US school teacher who had been held in Russia on mercenary charges, has been released.

Sam Fender announces biggest headline shows to date with The Proper Massive Stadium Tour

Tour dates will fuel further rumours that the singer-songwriter is also headlining Glastonbury next year

Is Ebola under control in Kenya after nine cases confirmed?

The US has advised its citizens to reconsider travelling to Kenya but the government tries to reassure people.

PSG rocked as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia suffers season-ending ACL injury

Kvaratskhelia ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during PSG’s 4-2 win over Barcelona on Tuesday night