Rwanda closes border with Congo over Ebola

KINSHASA — A Rwandan official says his country has closed its border with Congo because of the deadly Ebola outbreak.

The state minister for foreign affairs Olivier Nduhungirehe confirmed the border closure to The Associated Press on Thursday.

The closure comes after a man died of Ebola in Congo's major city of Goma, which is on the Rwandan border. He was the second confirmed Ebola case in Goma.

The World Health Organization, which declared this yearlong Ebola outbreak a global health emergency last month, has recommended against travel restrictions.

It also says the risk of regional spread is "very high."

A Congolese official says a person who had contact with the second confirmed Ebola case in the city of Goma is at an Ebola treatment center after showing signs of the disease.

If this suspected case is confirmed, it could be the first transmission of Ebola in this yearlong outbreak inside Goma, a city of more than 2 million people on the Rwandan border.

Witnesses say border crossings with Rwanda near the city now appear to be closed.

AP