The first suspected Ebola patient has been identified in Israel and is currently being treated in isolation, the Israeli Health Ministry press service reported.
Laboratory tests are underway to confirm the diagnosis. Results are expected within 48 hours. At the same time, specialists are conducting an epidemiological investigation to identify possible contacts of the patient, the Health Ministry noted.
“At this stage, this is only a suspicion; there are no confirmed cases of Ebola in Israel“, the ministry stressed.
No details were released about the patient's identity or health condition, nor was it specified whether he arrived in Israel from abroad.
The current Ebola outbreak began on May 15 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda. Its epicenter is in the Congolese province of Ituri. To date, it is second in terms of deaths and cases, after the three epidemics of this dangerous disease that have occurred in Africa in the past 50 years. On May 17, the World Health Organization declared this Ebola epidemic a public health emergency of international concern.