Guinea has closed its borders with Liberia and Sierra Leone to control the spread of Ebola, which has killed 959 people in the three countries.
The latest outbreak is thought to have begun in Guinea, but Liberia and Sierra Leone are now facing the largest number of new cases. The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday the spread of the virus was a global health emergency.
The Ebola virus is carried between humans through bodily fluids. Animals such as fruit bats have the virus, which can be carried to humans through contact with blood or eating of bush meat.
In recent weeks, countries around the world have advised their citizens not to travel to the affected countries. The infections have spread to Nigeria, which has recorded two deaths and several more cases. The total number of cases in the present outbreak reaches 1,779, the WHO said on Friday. The most recent numbers from 5 and 6 August showed 68 new cases and 29 deaths. They included 26 new cases in Sierra Leone and 38 in Liberia, but no new cases in Guinea, where the outbreak began.
Guinea said it was closing its borders in order to stop people from entering the country. “We have momentarily closed the borders between Guinea and Sierra Leone because of all the news that we have received from there recently,” Health Minister Remy Lamah told a news conference. He added that Guinea had also closed its border with Liberia.
Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia have already declared increasing levels of emergency over the spread of the virus. The most intense outbreak in Guinea was located in the region along the border with Liberia and Sierra Leone. The WHO had said the worst-affected area, which crosses the borders between the three countries, would be set apart and treated as a “unified zone”.
It is not clear what effect Guinea’s announcement will have on the decision.
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