Obama sends 3,000 US troops to West Africa to halt spread of ebola

President Obama’s decision came as the World Health Organisation warned cases could double every three weeks. Containing the deadly virus has cost £617 million since it was identified in March, the UN health agency added.

About 3,000 US military personnel will be based in Liberia and supply medical and logistical support to overwhelmed medics. They will also set up 17 health care centres.

Ebola is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of sick patients, making doctors and nurses especially vulnerable to contracting the virus.

Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea are among the hardest-hit countries. Chris Coons, head of the Senate foreign relations African affairs sub-committee, said: ‘This humanitarian intervention should serve as a firewall against a global security crisis that has the potential to reach American soil.’

Meanwhile, a Senate panel on the ebola crisis will hear from Dr Kent Brantly, an American who contracted the virus in Liberia but recovered after treatment with an experimental drug.