Guinea Resilience System

ASSOCIATED PRESS by EDITH M. LEDERER                                                                             Dec. 5, 2014

UNITED NATIONS -- Sierra Leone said Friday that between 80 and 100 new cases of Ebola are being reported every day and the country now hardest-hit by the deadly virus desperately needs over 1,000 beds to treat victims.

Sierra Leone's Finance Minister Kaifalah Marah painted a grim picture to the U.N. Economic and Social Council Friday of the challenges facing his West African nation which failed to meet a World Health Organization interim goal of isolating 70 percent of Ebola patients and safely burying 70 percent of victims by Dec. 1.

The two other hard-hit countries, Liberia and Guinea, did meet the deadline, and the U.N.'s Ebola chief Dr. David Nabarro said the number of new cases in Liberia has dropped from 60 per day in September to 10 per day. ...

UPDATE: Liberia court suspends ban on mass gatherings in Monrovia

REUTERS  By James Harding Giahyue                                                         Dec. 7, 2014                                                                                    

MONROVIA --Liberia's top court issued a stay on a government order banning public gatherings in the capital ahead of Senate elections next week that was imposed because electioneering risks spreading Ebola, Information Minister Lewis Brown said on Sunday.

Presiding Associate Justice Philip

On Monday, the court will hear a petition by civil society groups, prominent citizens and some political parties who seek a delay to the Senate elections, now set for Dec. 16, until Ebola is eradicated.

On Wednesday, the court will hear a separate petition by independent Senate candidate Robert Sirleaf, the son of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

issued the stay pending two Supreme Court hearings this week, Brown said.

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WASHINGTON POST  by Lena H. Sunand and Kevin Sieff                                               Dec. 14, 2014

The United States is weighing an increase in aid, including a possible military component, to help fight the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, the country in West Africa where the deadly virus is spreading the fastest, officials said Thursday.

“We are looking at what more can be done in Sierra Leone, recognizing that is the forefront when it comes to the virus, and we’re clearly looking at all options,” said a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss policies that are being formulated.

“Nothing is off the table,” he said. “If we determine that only the U.S. military with its unique capabilities can bring this under control, it is something we are willing to consider.”

Among the options is shifting foreign medical teams from­ ­Liberia to Sierra Leone, said ­Andrew Weber, the State Department’s deputy coordinator for Ebola response, in an interview.

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MILITARYNEWS.COM  by Richard Sisk                            Dec. 3, 2014

The U.S. military was scaling back its efforts against Ebola in Liberia amid encouraging signs of progress against the epidemic, Army Gen. David Rodriguez said Wednesday.

U.S. personnel construct the Monrovia Medical Unit site in Monrovia, Liberia. The MMU is being constructed in the event any medical workers in the area catch Ebola while assisting in Operation United Assistance. Craig Philbrick/Army

The military initially planned to construct 17 treatment centers of 100 beds each in Liberia, but will now set up 10 centers for virus victims. The first three centers will have 100 beds, but the remaining seven will have 50 beds, Rodriguez, head of U.S. Africa Command, said at a Pentagon briefing.

Rodriguez also said the military was looking at possibly easing the 30-day quarantine period for troops returning from West Africa. However, he stressed that no decisions had been made.