(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Lebanon’s Agriculture Ministry banned the import of live animals from African countries hit by the Ebola virus on Friday, as part of the government’s measures to combat the risk of the fatal virus.
Minister Akram Chehayeb banned the import of chimpanzees, gorillas, bats, monkeys, forest antelope, porcupines, or any animal suspected of being a carrier of the disease.
Earlier, the Agriculture Ministry took measures to scan and report passengers with symptoms of the disease before leaving the Beirut airport. The Labor Ministry also suspended work permits for people coming from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea.
The World Health Organization says this epidemic is an “extraordinary event” and is causing widespread international risk.
“A coordinated international response is deemed essential to stop and reverse the international spread of Ebola,” the WHO said in a statement after a two-day meeting of its emergency committee.
Meanwhile, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have declared a state of emergency.