A Kenyan court has blocked the United States plans to establish an Ebola quarantine facility for American citizens in Kenya. The facility was planned as a 50-bed isolation centre that was to be staffed by US medical personnel and was scheduled to begin operations on Friday, according to an American official.
A High Court judge prohibited the operation of any Ebola facility in Kenya by any foreign government until the case is heard, following a petition from the rights group Katiba Institute, which warned that the arrangement posed serious and imminent risks to public health. The exact location of the proposed US treatment centre was not disclosed by American authorities, but lawmakers from Laikipia County in central Kenya raised objections after reports emerged that it would be sited in their area, calling on the government to provide full transparency.
US officials said the isolation centre was intended to treat American citizens believed to have been exposed to the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Kenya was chosen because of its proximity to the outbreak zone and the need to provide timely treatment to Americans, a US official explained.
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However, the court in Nairobi specifically restrained government agencies and officials from establishing, operating, facilitating, approving, or permitting any Ebola-related quarantine, isolation, or treatment centre tied to agreements with the US or any foreign government in Kenya. Justice Patricia Nyaundi also barred authorities from admitting into Kenya any person exposed to or infected with Ebola under the proposed arrangement.
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