US offers protection for people of Ebola hit countries

Washington (AFP) - The United States is offering a temporary haven to citizens from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, protecting them from deportation to the Ebola-struck countries, officials said Thursday.

People from the three West African countries which have been hit hardest by Ebola can request Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for an 18 month period, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said.

The designations mean that nationals from the three countries and people without nationality who lived in those countries will not be deported and will be allowed to work in the United States, a statement from the Department of Homeland Security said.

Eligible people have to demonstrate they have been continuously residing in the United States since November 20 and will undergo security checks to receive the status.

The World Health Organization said Wednesday 5,420 people have died from Ebola during the recent outbreak.

More than 99 percent of those deaths have been in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

US President Barack Obama said Tuesday he still sees the Ebola threat as a danger to the United States and the world.

The WHO has recorded 14,413 total cases of Ebola in the outbreak.