Ebola death toll hits 4,960: WHO

 The World Health Organization said Friday that 13,268 people had been infected with Ebola across eight countries, and 4,960 of them had died, AFP reports.

On Wednesday, it had reported 13,042 cases and 4,818 deaths.

The UN health agency has acknowledged though that the number of deaths are likely far higher, since the fatality rate in the current outbreak is known to be around 70 percent.

The deadliest Ebola outbreak ever has hit Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone the hardest.

In its latest toll, the WHO said 2,766 deaths were recorded in Liberia, out of a total of 6,619 cases.

In Sierra Leone, 1,130 people had died from the virus out of 4,862 cases. In Guinea, there were 1,054 deaths from 1,760 cases.

Data from Nigeria and Senegal remained unchanged, and both countries have been declared Ebola free.

Nigeria had eight deaths and 20 cases, while Senegal had one case and no deaths.

Meanwhile, one death has been recorded in Mali -- that of a two-year-old girl from Guinea -- while one case of infection in Spain, a nurse, has been cured.

In the United States, four cases have been recorded and one person -- a Liberian -- had died from Ebola.

Ebola, one of the deadliest viruses known to man, is spread only through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person showing symptoms such as fever or vomiting.

People caring for the sick or handling the bodies of people infected Ebola are therefore especially exposed.

WHO said Friday that a total of 549 healthcare workers were known to have contracted the virus, and 311 of them had died.