Rwanda Closes Border with DRC Over Ebola

Rwanda has closed its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), over a deadly Ebola outbreak that started a year ago and has killed more than 1,803 people.

This follows a second Ebola death in densely populated city of Goma, on Rwandan border. The artisanal miner died on Wednesday morning in the city of Goma, home to two million people, authorities said.

The latest victim came from the north-eastern province of Ituri but fell ill and was admitted to a health centre in Kiziba, on the outskirts of Goma, which is on a porous border with Rwanda.

He later developed symptoms of bleeding and bruising, and tested positive to Ebola on Tuesday and died the next day.

The World Health Organization, recomended against travel or trade restrictions, but also declared the outbreak in the DRC a global threat emergency last month.

The DRC presidency’s office said it regretted what it described as a unilateral decision by the Rwandan authorities to restrict movement at the border, “which runs counter to the advice of the World Health Organization”.

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