Updated 00:40 a.m. Moscow Time
UNITED NATIONS, September 18 (RIA Novosti) - The United Nations Security Council adopted on Thursday a resolution that calls on countries to lift travel an border restrictions that have been imposed on countries affected by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
The resolution calls on UN member states, particularly in the region, "to lift general travel and border restrictions, imposed as a result of the Ebola outbreak, and that contribute to the further isolation of the affected countries and undermine their efforts to respond."
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who oversaw the UNSC meeting on the Ebola outbreak, said that there are five key priorities in fighting the epidemic: stopping infection; treating the sick; ensuring essential services; preserving stability; and preventing future outbreaks.
According to the figures, released by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday, the current Ebola outbreak has already infected 5,335 people in West Africa, killing 2,622 of them. The epidemic began in southern Guinea in February and spread to Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Senegal. The World Health Organization (WHO) said the virus could affect some 20,000 people before it is brought under control.
The Ebola virus mortality rate currently stands at 53 percent. There is no officially approved medication for the disease, and experts claim prevention is the only cure. Several countries, including Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan are currently working on vaccines, with the first live vaccine trial commencing at Oxford University Wednesday.
