World Health Organization Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in Kinshasa, the capital of Congo, late Thursday to review efforts to control an outbreak of a rare strain of Ebola.
"To come here is to really show to the community that they're not alone," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters.
"Pushing orders from my comfortable office in Geneva is easy, but I'm asking my colleagues to work with the community and I am asking communities to protect themselves."
According to the WHO, there were 1,077 suspected Ebola cases and 238 suspected deaths recorded as of Tuesday. Doctors and health workers are struggling to contain the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which currently has no approved vaccine or treatment. Due to limited supplies, some medical staff have even been forced to use expired face masks while treating patients.
Health workers are also facing anger from local residents because strict burial rules for Ebola victims conflict with traditional funeral practices. At least three attacks on health centers have been reported so far. Tedros said the situation is becoming even harder because many people in the area have been displaced by armed conflict and are also dealing with food shortages.
Last week, the Trump administration announced a temporary ban on entry into the U.S. for people without American passports or green cards who have recently visited Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan. The administration also said Americans exposed to Ebola would be sent to a facility in Kenya instead of being flown back to the U.S. Meanwhile, Congo's neighboring countries, Uganda and Rwanda, have closed their borders.
Responding to such bans, the WHO chief urged countries not to impose travel bans on people from nations affected by the outbreak. "There are ways to manage workers and to manage cases without having a strong, restricted travel ban and we don't encourage that as WHO," he added.
On Thursday, the European Union sent medical aid to Ituri province, the center of the outbreak. The United States also announced an additional $80 million in aid, bringing its total support to more than $112 million.
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