Ebola claims more victims in West Africa

Ebola continues to spread in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, with a combined 44 new cases and 21 deaths between July 6 and 8, the World Health Organisation has said.

This brought the total in West Africa's first outbreak of the deadly disease to 888 cases, including 539 deaths since February. It is the largest and deadliest so far, the UN agency said.

Ebola causes fever, vomiting, bleeding and diarrhoea and kills up to 90 percent of those infected, Al-Jazeera reported. It is highly contagious and is transmitted through contact with blood and other fluids.