Clashes in Congo, the Red Cross raises the alarm: risk of Ebola virus escape from a laboratory

According to the organization's regional director, if the samples stored in the facility were to spread there would be "unimaginable consequences"

The International Red Cross has warned of the risk of viruses, including Ebola, leaking from a laboratory in Goma, Congo. This is because the ongoing violent fighting between the regular army and the M23 rebels is putting the safety of the laboratory at risk. In the area, clashes have been raging for days and have thrown the country into chaos after the rebels backed by Rwanda took control of the city, causing dozens of deaths.

The Red Cross, regional director Patrick Youssef told a press conference in Geneva, is "very concerned about the situation of the laboratory of the national institute for biomedical research, which is facing the risk of power cuts, as well as the question of the conservation of samples that could be affected by the clashes".

Youssef then warned of "unimaginable consequences if samples, including that of the Ebola virus, were to spread" in the area.