Kenya High Court Orders Temporary Closure of U.S. Ebola Facility
A Kenyan court in May directed the temporary closure of a U.S.-operated quarantine center at Laikipia Air Base. The ruling cited public-health risks in a country with no confirmed Ebola cases from the current outbreak.
jurist.orgThe Kenya High Court in May ordered the temporary closure of a U.S.-operated quarantine facility at Laikipia Air Base near Nanyuki, about 190 km north of Nairobi. The court said the center would expose the public to unacceptable risks in a country without any confirmed cases from the current outbreak.
Background on the Outbreak Health authorities first reported the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 15 May. By 9 June the country had recorded 617 confirmed cases and 117 deaths from the Bundibugyo strain. The same strain has crossed into Uganda. There is no licensed vaccine or reliable treatment for this variant.
U.S. officials stated the facility would allow rapid isolation of American personnel working in or traveling through affected areas, avoiding longer evacuation flights. Kenyan President William Ruto said last week that rejecting the arrangement would appear unhelpful given long-standing U.S. support for Kenyan health programs.
Johannesburg-based activist Tian Johnson told Bhekisisa the issue extends beyond quarantine logistics. "It is about why the same urgency is not directed towards strengthening African laboratories, surveillance systems, and the healthcare workforce," he said.
An open letter released this week and signed by health leaders, including South African scientists Helen Rees and Shabir Madhi, called for an end to what it described as a cycle of panic and neglect.
