PARIS (AP) — France and other European countries are considering following the lead of the U.S. and Britain to start screening passengers arriving on flights from the West African countries hit hardest by the Ebola outbreak.
The French presidency said in a statement Monday that Francois Hollande discussed the possibility of starting screening passengers from Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone during a phone call with U.S. President Barack Obama.
France will also accept a request by Guinean authorities to set up additional Ebola treatment centers, the presidency said. France is already building one such center in Guinea.
In Brussels, the EU announced health officials will hold a meeting on Thursday to see where they can cooperate better to contain the disease. EU spokesman Frederic Vincent said they would especially center on whether there is a need to check passengers at EU airports.
On Saturday U.S. customs and health officials began taking the temperatures of passengers arriving at New York’s Kennedy International Airport from the three West African countries in a stepped-up effort to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus. The screening is to expand to four additional U.S. airports this week and Britain has also said it will introduce “enhanced” screening of travelers for Ebola at Heathrow and Gatwick airports and Eurostar rail terminals.
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