World Health congratulates the United States for its efforts to fight the Ebola virus

The United States has stepped up the fight against the Ebola virus in Congo by allowing more of its experts to visit the epidemic zone, said the Executive Director of the WHO, Mike Ryan.

Ryan told reporters that many agencies could redouble their efforts and send more people.

"It is hard to fight without being your best ally, but our colleagues at the US Centers for Disease Control have provided incredible support, both in Congo and in neighboring countries, and here in Geneva at our health centers. operations. "

Health workers seek to block the virus by looking for people at risk and vaccinating them, as well as any other person likely to be infected.

The virus has killed more than 1,700 people in the Congo since the second-worst epidemic in the world a year ago. It is feared that the virus will spread in the main city of Goma or cross the border into Uganda.

Poor security conditions in the affected areas have hindered efforts to contain the outbreak and calls for foreign aid agencies to deploy more field staff have multiplied.

The former US coordinator for the United States, Ronald Klein, had earlier asked the White House to change its policy of keeping the staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention safe from epidemics. . Disease ".