Graphic Photos: Liberian Soldiers Open Fire on Harmless Residents of Ebola Slum

Liberian soldiers opened fire on residents of a slum in their country's capital city today after it was locked down in an effort to contain the spread of Ebola virus.

People ran screaming as soldiers from the country's Ebola Task Force brutally enforced a quarantine of Monrovia's West Point district ordered by the country's president last night.

As the violence erupted in Liberia, hundreds of miles away a team of experts was meanwhile dispatched to a remote part of of Congo where 10 people died after suffering Ebola like symptoms.


It was not immediately clear if the victims had died of Ebola, but a witness said they had all suffered fever, diarrhoea and bleeding from the ears and nostrils - all symptoms of the deadly virus.

Fears of the spread of Ebola is consuming West Africa. The latest outbreak - the worst ever - is believed to have started in Guinea but, so far, Liberia has been worst hit.

The chaos in Monrovia erupted after protesters surrounded the home of the West Point's commissioner, Miatta Flowers, blaming her for the decision to turn their neighbourhood into an open-air isolation ward.

Soldiers carrying assault rifles lashed out at residents with telescopic truncheons and at least one man was shot as a security team moved in to evacuate Mrs Flowers.

A resident of the West Point district told the Associated Press by phone that security forces were firing into the air to disperse crowds angry over the quarantine measures.

Fear and tension have been building in Monrovia for days and West Point has been one of the flashpoints. Many residents feel the government has not done enough to protect them from the spread of Ebola.

Tensions came to a head over the weekend when a mob attacked and looted an Ebola screening centre, accusing officials of bringing sick people from all over Monrovia into their neighbourhood.

Dozens of people waiting to be screened fled in the chaos. Looters made off with items, including bloody sheets and mattresses that could further spread the virus.

In many areas of the capital, meanwhile, dead bodies have been in the streets for hours, sometimes days, even though residents asked that the corpses be picked up by health ministry workers wearing protective gear.

Source: Daily Mail