Africa

Nathan Bradley Bethea - 09.19.14 - thedailybeast.com

This week, the White House announced its intentions to deploy 3,000 troops and spend about $500 million to combat the worsening Ebola epidemic in Liberia. The news comes amid reports that the suspected infection rate and death toll in that country has nearly doubled in the past month, making it the worst Ebola outbreak in history, with more people killed by the disease than in all other previous cases combined. As American troops get ready to head over, I'd like to offer some insight into what the military’s operation might look like based on my experience deployed on a similar mission.

The flutrackers forum has been an excellent source of Ebola-related information.  Here is a summary of their updates on the attacks on WHO healthcare workers in the Nzerekore region of Guinea (see actual flutrackers posts in the link below).

Last month (in August 2014) the general market area of Nzerekore was sprayed (to disinfect) by healthcare workers during the night, without the people being informed that the spraying would be taking place.

The people of Nzerekore were angered by this action, so a riot broke out the following morning.  Since then, the people of Nzerekore have had an aversion to healthcare workers.

When the WHO healthcare workers arrived (this week) to educate the people on Ebola, they were quickly surrounded and their bodyguards were overcome by large numbers of youth from the village.  The WHO healthcare workers and the bodyguards were assaulted, and had to flee for their lives.  The number of injured and deaths from this attack has not yet been determined. Some may still be in hiding, or being held hostage.

Healthcare workers should not enter this epicenter region until an understanding with the people of the village is reached.

By Julia Belluz - Sep 18, 2014 - vox.com

Tuesday's announcement by President Barack Obama — that the US would be sending in an army of 3,000 to fight Ebola — came as a relief to the many wondering when the international community would wake up to the daily horror show playing out in West Africa.But the tactics also raised some questions: why was Obama sending soldiers to fight off a virus? And why has he been characterizing this disease spread as a "security threat" and "security priority"?

Why Obama is describing Ebola as a "security threat"

Obama has repeatedly referred to the threat of Ebola in security terms, arguing the virus could cripple the already fragile economies in the African region. He's made the case that this will have consequences for not only the security of countries there, but also for nations around the world — even if the virus doesn't spread beyond Africa.

http://www.vox.com/2014/9/17/6334943/why-is-the-military-being-sent-to-attack-ebola-virus/in/5712456

By Lena H. Sun and Lenny Bernstein Sep 17 2014 - The Washington Post

If the Ebola epidemic continues to surge in the three worst-affected countries — Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone — its economic impact could grow eight fold next year, dealing a potentially catastrophic blow to the already fragile states, according to a World Bank analysis released Wednesday.

The largest economic effects of the crisis are from the “fear factor” — people’s concerns about contagion, officials said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/world-bank-warns-ebolas-economic-impact-could-be-catastrophic-if-virus-is-unchecked/2014/09/17/8c490a3c-3e79-11e4-b03f-de718edeb92f_story.html