An Ebola treatment tent is set ablaze again in eastern Congo with 18 suspected cases escaping

BUNIA, Congo (AP) — A tent used for treatment of the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo was set on fire for the second time this week, and 18 people suspected of infection escaped, a local hospital director said Saturday.

Unidentified people arrived at the clinic in Mongbwalu, a town at the center of the outbreak of the Bundibugyo virus, a rare type of Ebola, on Friday night and set fire to a tent set up by the Doctors Without Borders humanitarian group for suspected and confirmed Ebola cases, Dr. Richard Lokudi, director of the Mongbwalu General Reference Hospital, told The Associated Press.

“We strongly condemn this act, as it caused panic among the staff of the Mongbwalu Referral Hospital and also resulted in the escape of 18 suspected cases into the community," he said.

On Thursday, another treatment center in the town of Rwampara was burned down after family members were prohibited from retrieving the body of a local man.

The bodies of those who died of Ebola can be highly contagious and lead to further spread when people prepare them for burial and gather for funerals. The dangerous work of burying suspected victims is being managed wherever possible by authorities, which can be met by protests from families and friends.

A burial for Ebola patients in Rwampara took place on Saturday under tight security as tensions between health workers and the local community ran high, said David Basima, a team leader with the Red Cross overseeing burials.

“Arriving at the (healthcare) structure, we experienced a lot of difficulties, including resistance from young people and the community. So we were forced to alert the authorities so that they could come to our aid, just for safety,” said Basima.

Authorities in northeastern Congo on Friday banned funeral wakes and gatherings of more than 50 people in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. The World Health Organization said that the outbreak now poses a “very high” risk for Congo — up from a previous categorization of “high” — but that the risk of the disease spreading globally remains low.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday that 82 cases and seven deaths have been confirmed in Congo, but that the outbreak is believed to be “much larger.”

There is no available vaccine for the Bundibugyo virus, which spread undetected for weeks in Congo’s Ituri province following the first known death while authorities tested for another, more common, Ebola virus and came up negative. There are now 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths, though more are expected as surveillance expands.

Dr. Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said a response to the outbreak must include building trust with communities.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Saturday that three of its volunteers had died from the outbreak in Mongbwalu. The agency said it believed the three healthcare workers contracted the virus while carrying out dead body management activities on March 27 as part of a humanitarian mission unrelated to Ebola.

This would significantly push back the timeline of the outbreak from the previous first confirmed death in late April in the town of Bunia, the capital of Ituri.

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McMakin reported from Dakar, Senegal.

A sanitation worker from the Bunia city government sprays chlorine to disinfect the central market, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak, in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Motorcycle taxi riders and their passengers wait at the entrance to the central market while sanitation workers disinfect the area, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Members of the Congo Scouts movement carry an Ebola awareness banner along a street during a public sensitisation campaign amid the Ebola outbreak in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Motorcycle taxi riders and their passengers wait at the entrance to the central market while sanitation workers disinfect the area, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

A sanitation worker from the Bunia city government sprays chlorine to disinfect the central market, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak, in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Sanitation workers from Bunia city government spray disinfectant in the central market area near a rubbish truck in Ituri province, as they continue efforts to combat the Ebola outbreak in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

OSLO, Norway (AP) — Three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmatí starts on the bench for Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League final against OL Lyonnes just three weeks after returning from a broken leg.

Bonmatí has played only four games, three as a substitute, since her comeback from the fractured left fibula she sustained in November.

Clara Serrajordi, an 18-year-old Spain international, starts in Bonmatí’s place in support of two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas.

Barcelona and Lyon meet in Saturday's final for the fourth time in eight seasons with both chasing a sweep of four trophies this season. Lyon leads Barcelona 2-1 head-to-head in their Champions League title matches.

Lyon is captained by Wendie Renard, the 35-year-old center back who has featured in all of the club’s record eight European titles.

United States captain Lindsey Heaps anchors the midfield in one of her last games for Lyon before she returns home to join Denver Summit, an expansion team in the NWSL.

Heaps’ international teammate Lily Yohannes, aged 18, starts in the Lyon midfield.

Barcelona is in its seventh final in eight years, its sixth in a row, and is widely favored to win a fourth title. That era started with a humbling 4-1 loss to Lyon in the 2019 final in Budapest.

“They were much, much better than us. I am humble enough to say that,” Putellas recalled Friday.

Lyon also won their title clash in 2022 and only in 2024 did Barcelona finally triumph against its biggest rival.

The teams are coached by former colleagues at Barcelona. Jonatan Giráldez now coaches Lyon after winning two Women’s Champions League titles at Barcelona when Pere Romeu was one of his assistants.

“I feel privileged to face Barcelona as I’m grateful for the experience I had there and I wish them the best,” Giráldez said.

UEFA’s choice of Oslo to host the final has drawn some criticism from Barcelona.

Bonmatí suggested the 28,000-seat Ullevaal Stadium was “a step back” for women’s soccer: a stadium too small in a city with too few direct flights.

Norway was defended as “the motherland” of women’s soccer in Europe by UEFA’s director of women’s football, Nadine Kessler. She played in three Champions League finals that each drew crowds of fewer than 20,000.

The Ullevaal is sold out Saturday, while one year ago Sporting Lisbon’s stadium was just three-quarters full with nearly 39,000 to watch Arsenal beat Barcelona 1-0.

Norway’s established stars — Barcelona’s Caroline Graham Hansen and Lyon's Ada Hegerberg — stood up for their national stadium Friday.

“The venue was decided a couple of years ago,” said Graham Hansen, who grew up in this neighborhood of Oslo, “and you didn’t take it for granted you would sell out the stadium.”

The game is “a once in a lifetime” opportunity for Norwegian soccer and to inspire young girls, Hegerberg said.

The 2027 final is in Warsaw at Poland’s national stadium, which can hold 56,000 for the biggest games.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

The tournament trophy is displayed on the pitch ahead of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Barcelona's Alexia Putellas walks with a ball during a training session on the eve of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Barcelona's Aitana Bonmati, right, and Sydney Schertenleib play with a ball during a training session on the eve of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Lyonnes players and staff gather together on the pitch during a training session on the eve of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Lyonnes' Ada Hegerberg reaches for the ball during a training session on the eve of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Barcelona's Kika Nazareth plays with a ball during a training session on the eve of the Women's Champions League final soccer match between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes, in Oslo, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)