Hagel Affirms Quarantine for All Returning Troops From Ebola Operation

Thousands of Troops Will Be Placed in Quarantine

Though there is zero evidence of exposure, and indeed officials made much of the US military force not being anywhere near actual Ebola patients, all returning troops from the West Africa Ebola operation will be subject to a 21-day quarantine.

The Joint Chiefs issued the plan last week, and it was affirmed by Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel today. The White House is defending the plan, saying that its being done out of an “abundance of caution.”

The rule will not, according to the administration, impact, civilian workers from the Defense Department or health care volunteers, even though they’re the ones who have a conceivable risk of exposure.

Health care experts have warned that not only is the US military operation unlikely to turn the tide of the Ebola battle, but that the quarantine effort may actually hurt the overall health care effort by discouraging other groups from taking part.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.