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Rwanda Imposes Ebola Checks on U.S. and Spanish Travelers

Rwanda has boosted travel restrictions to stem the spread of the Ebola virus, ordering travelers who have been in the United States and Spain to send daily updates, the health minister said Wednesday.

"Every day... they should call us or send an internet message," stating their health condition, Minister of Health Agnes Binagwaho told Agence France Presse.

The requirement applies to all travelers who have been in the U.S. or Spain within the past three weeks. Messages should be sent for the first 21-days they are in Rwanda, she said.

It also applies to Rwandan citizens who had been in the U.S. or Spain.

Visitors who have been to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone within the last 21 days are barred from entry to Rwanda, which is screening all arriving travelers for Ebola.

Rwandan citizens who have traveled to the three west African countries are placed under quarantine on arrival.

The deadliest-ever outbreak of Ebola has claimed more than 4,500 lives in west Africa, and experts warn the rate of infections could reach 10,000 a week by early December.

There have been isolated Ebola cases of health workers in the United States and Spain, who caught the virus from those infected in west Africa.

Source: Agence France Presse


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