On Tuesday, the World Health Organization said that Guinea no longer has transmission of the Ebola virus for the first time since a deadly epidemic swept the country and two neighbors, Sierra Leone and Liberia, starting in December, 2013. Barring any hidden cases, this marks the end of the outbreak, which killed more than 11,000 people and sickened 28,000 more in 10 countries, sowing panic around the world. "This is a very big victory for the nation and the people of Guinea," said Fode Tass Sylla, a spokesman for the country’s Ebola task force.
The milestone in Guinea means that two 21-day incubation periods have come and gone since the last Ebola infection, in a 3-week-old girl who survived (and is pictured above). Public health officials will be watching the country closely over the next three months in case the virus re-emerges, as it did in Liberia. Guinea isn't waiting to celebrate the end to its long ordeal: On Wednesday, the government is planning a celebration in Conakry, the capital, with popular musicians helping end the dark year on a happier note.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Road trip: New England’s maple syrup seasonFeature New England is serving up maple syrup in delicious and unexpected ways
-
Music Reviews: Mdou Moctar, Panda Bear, and Tate McRaeFeature “Tears of Injustice,” “Sinister Grift,” and “So Close to What”
-
What's at stake in the Mahmoud Khalil deportation fight?Talking Points Vague accusations and First Amendment concerns
-
RFK Jr. offers alternative remedies as measles spreadsSpeed Read Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes unsupported claims about containing the spread as vaccine skepticism grows
-
Texas outbreak brings 1st US measles death since 2015Speed read The outbreak is concentrated in a 'close-knit, undervaccinated' Mennonite community in rural Gaines County
-
Mystery illness spreading in Congo rapidly kills dozensSpeed Read The World Health Organization said 53 people have died in an outbreak that originated in a village where three children ate a bat carcass
-
Ozempic can curb alcohol cravings, study findsSpeed read Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy may also be helpful in limiting alcohol consumption
-
New form of H5N1 bird flu found in US dairy cowsSpeed Read This new form of bird flu is different from the version that spread through herds in the last year
-
Microplastics accumulating in human brains, study findsSpeed Read The amount of tiny plastic particles found in human brains increased dramatically from 2016 to 2024
-
FDA approves painkiller said to thwart addictionSpeed Read Suzetrigine, being sold as Journavx, is the first new pharmaceutical pain treatment approved by the FDA in 20 years
-
Study finds possible alternative abortion pillSpeed Read An emergency contraception (morning-after) pill called Ella could be an alternative to mifepristone for abortions
