Agency reports from London said: The WHO announced the Ebola outbreak the largest and longest in history is worrying enough to merit being declared an international health emergency. WHO declared similar emergencies for the swine flu pandemic in 2009 and for polio in May.

The WHO chief, Dr. Margaret Chan, said the announcement is “a clear call for international solidarity” but acknowledged that many countries would probably not have any Ebola cases.

“Countries affected to date simply do not have the capacity to manage an outbreak of this size and complexity on their own,” Dr. Chan said at a news conference in Geneva. “I urge the international community to provide this support on the most urgent basis possible.”

The current outbreak of Ebola began in Guinea in March and has since spread to Sierra Leone and Liberia. (Special Reporter/HC)