Ebola as a Bio-Terror Weapon Spread by "Martyrs" Who Willingly Infect Themselves

This article, written by a guest writer in a Ugandan newspaper, struck me as very odd. He suggests that terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda have an army of "willing volunteers" who would knowingly infect themselves with the Ebola virus and then spread it through direct contact with as many people as possible. This could occur because, in Ebola outbreaks such as the one happening now in Uganda, samples sent to local labs for diagnosis are not handled in a secure manner and could easily be stolen and used to infect the volunteers. The author also suggests that radical volunteers (read 'martyrs') might also simply travel to infected zones and willingly initiate contact with a sick person in order to contract the deadly disease and then take it back to an unsuspecting population.

Of all of the nightmare scenarios of an act of bio-terrorism, this method is the most insidious I've ever heard. People WILLINGLY infecting themselves with Ebola in order to start an Ebola pandemic? The guy should be writing screen plays. Or is he onto something?

Victims of this particular Ebola strain are apparently not exhibiting the usual symptoms of Ebola (such as coughing blood), which has delayed the testing for the virus and enabled it to spread further than it would have spread under 'normal' conditions. Typically, Ebola burns itself out fast because it kills its victims so quickly and distinctly and is therefore relatively easy to diagnose. This strain was not easy to diagnose due to its unusual symptoms presentation and thus slipped under the disease monitors' radar. Because the initial symptoms are so run-of-the-mill (fever, loss of appetite, etc.), those who contract the disease through an Ebola martyr could likewise take a long time to be diagnosed, which would further enable its spread.

What a horrible and diabolical thought and plot. Let's hope that no-one is 'sick' enough to actually want to carry it out.

Here's the article.

[link to www.observer.ug]