Kenya approves US plan to open Ebola quarantine facility, US officials say

It pushes for the facility to be open to all nationalities, not just US citizens

A signage sits at the Mongbwalu General Referral Hospital, as aid agencies intensify efforts to contain an Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus in Mongbwalu, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 23, 2026. REUTERS/Gradel Muyisa Mumbere

Kenya has provided written approval for the US to open a quarantine facility in the East African nation for Americans exposed to the Ebola outbreak centred in the Democratic Republic of Congo, two US officials briefed on the response told Reuters.

The authorisation grants the US access to land at an air force base in Laikipia in central Kenya, one of the officials said.

Officials at Kenya's foreign and health ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Kenya had been pushing for the facility to be open to all nationalities, not just US citizens. It was not immediately clear if that would be the case.

The facility would be staffed by members of the US Public Health Service, a uniformed branch of the Department of Health and Human Services.

In a statement on Wednesday, Kenya's health ministry said it was in discussions with the US and other global partners about cooperating on the response to Ebola but did not mention the plan for a quarantine facility.

One American doctor infected with Ebola and several other US citizens exposed to the virus have been sent to Germany for treatment and monitoring. Another American doctor exposed to the virus was sent to Czech Republic.