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| Liberia to be declared Ebola-free, ending world outbreak | Liberia to be declared Ebola-free, ending world outbreak |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| Liberia is to be declared Ebola-free by the World Health Organization (WHO), effectively putting an end to the world's worst outbreak of the disease. | Liberia is to be declared Ebola-free by the World Health Organization (WHO), effectively putting an end to the world's worst outbreak of the disease. |
| The "end of active transmission" will be declared, after 42 days without a new case in Liberia. | The "end of active transmission" will be declared, after 42 days without a new case in Liberia. |
| It joins Guinea and Sierra Leone, which earned the status last year. | It joins Guinea and Sierra Leone, which earned the status last year. |
| However, UN chief Ban Ki-moon has warned that West Africa may see flare-ups of the virus. It has killed more than 11,000 people since December 2013. | However, UN chief Ban Ki-moon has warned that West Africa may see flare-ups of the virus. It has killed more than 11,000 people since December 2013. |
| How Ebola changed the world | How Ebola changed the world |
| Mapping Ebola | |
| 'Most critical' months | 'Most critical' months |
| A country is considered free of human-to-human transmission once two 21-day incubation periods have passed since the last known case tested negative for a second time. | A country is considered free of human-to-human transmission once two 21-day incubation periods have passed since the last known case tested negative for a second time. |
| However, the end of active transmission of Ebola has been declared twice before in Liberia - only for the infection to re-emerge. | However, the end of active transmission of Ebola has been declared twice before in Liberia - only for the infection to re-emerge. |
| This is why the expected declaration by WHO later on Thursday will be marked with caution, BBC Africa's health correspondent Anne Soy says. | This is why the expected declaration by WHO later on Thursday will be marked with caution, BBC Africa's health correspondent Anne Soy says. |
| On Wednesday, Mr Ban warned that "we can anticipate future flare-ups of Ebola in the coming year". | On Wednesday, Mr Ban warned that "we can anticipate future flare-ups of Ebola in the coming year". |
| "But we also expect the potential and frequency of those flare-ups to decrease over time," he added. | "But we also expect the potential and frequency of those flare-ups to decrease over time," he added. |
| Meanwhile, WHO chief Margaret Chan said the virus could persist in some Ebola survivors even after their full recovery. | Meanwhile, WHO chief Margaret Chan said the virus could persist in some Ebola survivors even after their full recovery. |
| "By the end of this year, we expect that all survivors will have cleared the virus from their bodies," Ms Chan was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency. | "By the end of this year, we expect that all survivors will have cleared the virus from their bodies," Ms Chan was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency. |
| She also described the next three months as "the most critical" for the three West African nations, which accounted for almost all of the deaths from the outbreak. |