Trump wants to send US citizens exposed to Ebola to Kenya 

Trump wants to open an Ebola quarantine centre in Kenya… despite the fact there are 0 cases of infection in Kenya.  

On May 15^th, an Ebola outbreak was confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by the DRC’s Ministry of Health. Laboratory tests identified the outbreak as the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which currently has no vaccine.  

As of June 2^nd, there are 363 confirmed cases of Ebola and 62 confirmed deaths in the DRC, and 15 confirmed cases and 1 confirmed death in Uganda. However, these figures are likely to change as suspected cases and deaths continue to be investigated. 

On May 17^th, the World Health Organisation classed the Ebola outbreak as a public health emergency, and aid agencies have warned that it may become the deadliest outbreak on record. Bob Kitchen, vice president of emergencies at the International Rescue Committee, attributes the slow global response to increased international conflict and cuts to global aid funding. 

“Eastern DRC is confronting this outbreak more fragile and less prepared than during the 2018-202 outbreak that killed more than 2000 people, and with fewer resources to fight it,” said Kitchen.  

Currently, the Ebola outbreak poses low risk to the UK and US and there are no confirmed cases. Despite this, the Trump administration has been working to set up an Ebola quarantine facility in Kenya for US citizens who may have been exposed to Ebola. This has sparked wide-spread backlash, with serious concerns about the public health of Kenyan citizens. 

Kenya has been selected as an appropriate location for an Ebola quarantine facility due to “its proximity [to the location of the outbreak] and to ensure Americans can be treated in a timely manner,” a US official said.   

The plan has been given the go-ahead by Kenya’s President, William Ruto. “We agreed on the importance of cooperation… Kenya will continue to act transparently, responsibly, and decisively to protect lives while contributing to regional and global health security,” Ruto said. 

However, this decision has been appealed in Kenya’s High Court, and hundreds of Kenyans have taken to the streets of Nairobi in protest. 

Critics of the plan cite concerns that Kenya’s health infrastructure is too fragile to cope with the dangers of bringing in potential Ebola patients.  

“The main petitioner, the Katiba Institute, who has taken this matter to court is blocking the facility, saying that the deal between the US and Kenya is not transparent at all,” Catherine Wambua-Soi reported to Al Jazeera from Nairobi. “They [the Katiba Institute, the Law Society of Kenya and the main doctors’ union] are all saying no to that facility. The judge said the government must present all the relevant paperwork for the deal.” 

By Marina Milsum, June 5, 2026.

Edited by Shweta Vasaya.