Ebola death toll rises

Geneva. — Nearly 7 000 people have now died from Ebola in West Africa, with the latest report from the World Health Organisation counting over 1 200 more deaths than in a toll given last week. Data published by the UN’s health body late on Friday showed that 16 169 people had been infected with Ebola and that 6 928 of them had died in the three countries at the centre of the outbreak – Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

On Wednesday last week, WHO had put Ebola death toll in the three countries at 5 674, with 15 additional deaths in other countries.

WHO provided no explanation for the steep hike in fatalities, mainly in Liberia, but the new toll likely includes previously unreported cases.

Given the difficulty in collecting figures and with the fatality rate in the current outbreak known to be around 70 percent, the agency has previously said it believes there have been far more deaths than those registered.

The deadliest Ebola outbreak ever has so far hit Liberia the hardest, although observers say the spread of the virus there has slowed significantly in recent weeks. — AFP.