Ebola 'an international emergency'

Keiji Fukuda
WHO
The United Nations health agency said the outbreak was an "extraordinary event".

"The possible consequences of further international spread are particularly serious in view of the virulence of the virus," it said in a statement.

Complex outbreak
More than 1,700 cases of Ebola have been reported in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the spread of Ebola in West Africa an international health emergency.
WHO officials said a coordinated international response was essential to stop and reverse the spread of the virus.
The announcement came after experts convened a two-day emergency meeting in Switzerland.
So far more than 930 people have died from Ebola in West Africa this year.

WHO director-general Dr Margaret Chan appealed for help for the countries hit by the "most complex outbreak in the four decades of this disease".

She said there would be no general ban on international travel or trade.