North Korea Bans Foreigners From Marathon Amid Ebola Fears – Travel Agency

According to a travel agency specializing in tours to North Korea, the country has banned foreign runners from participating in this year's Pyongyang Marathon over Ebola fears.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — North Korea banned foreigners from participating in an international marathon race scheduled for April due to fears that the deadly Ebola virus could enter the country, a Beijing-based travel agency specializing in tours to North Korea said Monday.

“We are sorry to announce that we have been informed by our partners in North Korea that no foreign runners will be allowed to participate in this year's Pyongyang Marathon — amateur or professional," the Koryo Tours said in a statement posted on Facebook.

The agency added that it is unclear when the border would reopen for tourism, but said it had been advised not to cancel its March tours.

Pyongyang marathon was first held in 1981, and became annual since 2000.

Ebola is a deadly disease that spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, or though contact with contaminated clothing or possessions.

The current Ebola outbreak began in West Africa in the end of 2013, mostly affecting Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Ebola has killed over 9,300 people with more than 22,500 cases of the disease registered, according to the WHO.

Earlier in 2014, several North Korean media outlets suggested that the Ebola virus could be a biological weapon created by the US military to achieve world domination.