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Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has declared the outbreak of Ebola "a national emergency" and approved more than $11m (£6.5m) to help contain it, the BBC reported.

The move comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) said the spread of the virus in West Africa was an international health emergency.

WHO says 961 people have died from Ebola in West Africa this year, two of them in Nigeria.

The total number of cases stands at 1,779, the UN health agency said.

In a statement, President Jonathan called on Nigerians to report any suspected Ebola cases to the nearest medical authorities.

He also urged the public not to spread "false information about Ebola which can lead to mass hysteria."

Nigeria became the fourth West African country involved in the outbreak when a dual US-Liberian citizen infected with Ebola arrived in Lagos after flying from Liberia via Togo on 20 July.

He died five days later and eight people who came into contact with him were also later diagnosed with Ebola. One of them, a nurse, died on Tuesday.