W.Africa gorillas still endangered, declining fast

Gorillas and chimpanzees may be twice as numerous in West Africa as previously thought, but the apes are still endangered, declining fast and in dire need of protection, an international study found Wednesday.

Congo announces 9 suspected Ebola cases, including 2 deaths

Health authorities are investigating nine suspected cases of Ebola in a remote corner of northern Congo, including two deaths, the country's health minister said Friday.

Liberia is Ebola Free (WHO)

The World Health Organization has declared Liberia free of the Ebola virus.

WHO made the declaration after Liberia reported no new Ebola cases for 42 days, twice the maximum incubation period for the deadly disease.

Ebola outbreak still a global emergency despite significant drop in cases (UN health agency)

UN, 10 April 2015 – A meeting convened by the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa still poses a threat to international peace and security, despite a major fall-off in in case incidence and geographic distribution in the most-affected countries Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

Ebola cases could reach between 550,000- 1.4 million by January - (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Between 550,000 and 1.4 million people in West Africa could be infected with the Ebola virus by January 20, 2015, according to a report issued on Tuesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The top range of the estimate, 1.4 million, assumes that the number of cases officially cited so far, 5,864 according to the count kept by the World Health Organization, is significantly underreported, and that it is likely that 2.5 times as many cases, or nearly 20,000, have in fact occurred.

WHO experts to gather in Geneva to discuss use of experimental anti-Ebola drugs

GENEVA, September 04 /ITAR-TASS/. About 200 health experts will gather on Thursday in Geneva for a two-day conference to discuss all aspect of the use of experimental drugs that have not yet been tested on humans in anti-Ebola efforts. 

This meeting will be sequential to a mid-August conference of the World Health Organization (WHO), which gave green light to the use of anti-Ebola drugs tested only on monkeys.

Ebola: cases, deaths ‘vastly underestimated,’ says UN health agency

UN,  15 August 2014 – Health workers at Ebola outbreak sites are seeing evidence that the numbers of reported cases and deaths “vastly underestimate” the magnitude of the crisis as they work around the clock to stop the disease from spreading, according to the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO, in its latest update on the Ebola outbreak in West Africa dated August 14, said no new cases have been detected in Nigeria, attributing the outcome to extensive contact tracing and monitoring, implemented with support from the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak a Global Health Emergency

The World Health Organization has declared the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to be an international public health emergency that requires an extraordinary response to stop its spread.

At a news conference in Geneva Friday, WHO director Margaret Chan said the announcement is "a clear call for international solidarity.''

She said the countries affected by the deadly virus "simply do not have the capacity to manage an outbreak of this size and complexity," as she appealed for greater international aid.

The impact of the WHO declaration is unclear.

Uganda refutes reports of Ebola outbreak

The Ugandan government on Thursday said there was no outbreak of the deadly Ebola hemorrhagic fever in the country after the suspected cases were confirmed to be negative.

Ruhakana Rugunda, minister of health, told reporters that laboratory results from the suspected cases turned out negative.

"There is no confirmed case of Ebola in Uganda. Media reports of reported cases in Kitgum and Kampala districts are false," he said, adding that any reported case will be investigated promptly and the public will be informed.