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Kenya mulls granting refuge to chimps from Ebola-hit Liberia

By Edith Honan NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenyan officials said on Friday they were considering conservationists’ appeals to give two baby chimpanzees, rescued from possible traffickers in ebola-hit Liberia, sanctuary in a Kenyan reserve but public health fears were holding up transfer. Conservationists believe the animals had been victims of trafficking that sent baby chimps from West and Central Africa to Chinese zoos and private estates in the Middle East, where

Breakthrough in quest for Ebola vaccine

An Ebola test vaccine provided blanket protection in a field trial in Guinea, researchers said, possibly heralding “the beginning of the end” for the devastating West African outbreak that has killed thousands. The serum was 100 percent effective after a week in more than 7,600 people inoculated, according to results published in The Lancet medical journal and hailed as “extremely promising” by World Health Organization (WHO) chief Margaret Chan. The

Rio pledges cleaner waters for Olympics next year

By Karolos Grohmann KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Efforts to improve the water quality for the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics are ongoing, Games organizers said on Saturday, adding the welfare of the athletes was a top priority after reports of severe pollution off the shores of the Brazilian metropolis. Privately commissioned tests of the water quality, where rowers, sailors and open water swimmers will be competing, revealed this week a

India court concludes hearing Maggi noodles case

An Indian court has concluded hearing a case filed by Nestle India challenging a local regulator’s report that Maggi instant noodles contained excess lead, a lawyer for the company said. The Bombay High Court will give a judgment at a later date, Rajesh Batra said in a statement late on Friday. Nestle has been at the center of India’s worst food scare in a decade after a regulator in the