Thailand Murder Suspects In Torture Claim

Two Burmese migrants accused of killing a pair of British tourists in Thailand have claimed they were beaten and threatened with electrocution by police.

Win Zaw Htun and Zaw Lin, who are both 21, claim they were mistreated following their arrest for the murder of Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, on the island of Koh Tao on September 15.

Their allegation follows claims made by other Burmese migrant workers arrested in connection with the murders who say they were subjected to similar treatment.

Human rights organisation Amnesty International has called for an independent investigation into the claims and demanded any confession extracted through torture be ruled inadmissible in court.

The organisation cited a lawyer from the Burmese embassy legal team, who said he had been told that police had beaten the suspect and "threatened him with electrocution".

David Miller and Hannah Witheridge were found dead on the island of Koh Tao

Thai police, who have come under immense domestic political pressure to solve the case, deny the allegations and have said they have DNA and CCTV evidence to back up murder confessions obtained from the men.

The suspects were recently paraded in front of reporters and performed a re-enactment of the murders on the beach where the Britons' bodies were found.

Video: Sept 19: CCTV Of Murder Victim

Police spokesman Colonel Kissana Phathanacharoen said re-enactments of crimes were commonplace after confessions.

"It's what you call the crime enactment," he said. "It's carried out in order to get a sense of what happened after the confession. In Thai law the offenders have to give their consent - you can't force them to do it."

A statement issued by Amnesty said: "According to reports, police officers poured boiling water over some of the Burmese migrant workers they were questioning. Others were also beaten and threatened."

Richard Bennett, Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific director, said: "The pressure to be seen to be solving an appalling crime that has garnered considerable attention should not result in the violation of rights, including to a fair trial.

"Authorities should provide protection from threats and acts of retaliation to anyone, regardless of their immigration status, reporting or speaking about torture or ill-treatment, and full redress to victims.

"They must also ensure that any alleged confession or information that has been coerced as a result of torture is not admitted as evidence in court, unless to prove that torture has been carried out.

"All suspects should also be guaranteed their rights to a fair trial - which is of particular importance in a crime that could carry a death sentence."

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said it was concerned about the reports and expected a fair investigation.

"The investigation and judicial process remains a matter for the Thai authorities, but we expect it to be conducted in a fair and transparent way," he said.

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Airstrikes Target IS Fighters In Border Town

Two new airstrikes have reportedly been carried out against Islamic State (IS) targets around the Syrian border town of Kobani.

Thick black smoke could be seen billowing into the air from a hill on the eastern side of the town, according to the AFP news agency.

A second strike, a few hours later, sent a cloud of smoke above the northeastern side of the city.

They were the first airstrikes since a flurry of attacks yesterday, which some sources said had helped Kurdish fighters of the People's Protection Units (YPG) push back the IS militants.

Idris Nahsen, a Kurdish official from Kobani, said the airstrikes had been helpful.

"The situation has changed since Tuesday," he said. "YPG forces have pushed back IS forces."

Video: IS Footage Shows Kobani Onslaught

It comes after at least 12 people were killed during pro-Kurdish demonstrations in Turkey, with protesters claiming the country is not doing enough in the fight against Islamic State jihadists.

According to reports, five people have been killed in Diyarbakir, the largest town in Turkey's majority-Kurdish southeast region.

Several other deaths were recorded in other southeastern towns, including three in Mardin, two in Siirt, one in Batman and another in Mus.

Police have also used tear gas and water cannon to disperse angry protests in Istanbul and Ankara.

Video: Turkey Turns Water Cannon On Kurds

Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala accused the pro-Kurdish protesters of "betraying their own country".

"Violence will be met with violence," he said.

"This irrational attitude should immediately be abandoned and (the protesters) should withdraw from the streets."

The demonstrations called by the main pro-Kurdish party, the People's Democratic Party (HDP), stem from claims that Ankara is failing to intervene militarily against IS jihadists fighting for Kobani.

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1. Gallery: Assad's Forces Seize Area From Islamists

   Forces of Syria's President Bashar al Assad carry a Syrian flag as they head towards a spot where a flag of the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front is positioned on a hillside in Zor al-Mahruqa village

2. Assad's forces said they had regained control of the area and its surrounding hills, in the Hama countryside

3. The flag of the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front is burnt on the hill

5. The Syrian national flag is erected

6. Assad forces inspect military equipment, which they said were left behind by rebel fighters in Zor al-Mahruqa village

7. An abandoned base where caves were dug by rebel fighters in Zor al-Mahruqa village

10. Assad forces inspect an underground base where caves were dug by rebel fighters in the nearby al-Hareeqa village

12. A Polish army member hods the German flag in front of an Eurofighter aircraft during a visit of new NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg of Norway (not pictured) at Lask air base

13. NATO will stand by member state Turkey if it comes under attack as a result of the fighting in neighboring Syria, alliance Secretary-General Stoltenberg said

Some 400 people are believed to have been killed in the town and thousands displaced during weeks of fighting.

US, Saudi Arabian and United Arab Emirates jets had previously launched five attacks against targets south of the city.

In a statement, US Central Command said four armed vehicles, anti-aircraft artillery, a tank and a militant unit were hit during the strikes.

Reports suggest the fighting has become less intense following the coalition attacks.

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1. Gallery: IS Attacks Town Near Turkish Border

   Turkish army tanks take up position on the Turkish-Syrian border near the southeastern town of Suruc in Sanliurfa Province

2. Kurdish fighters vowed not to abandon their increasingly desperate efforts to defend the Syrian border town of Kobani from Islamic State militants pressing in from three sides and pounding them with heavy artillery

3. Despite the heavy fighting, which has seen mortars rain down on residential areas in Kobani and stray fire hit Turkish territory, a Reuters reporter saw around 30 people cross over from Turkey, apparently to help with defence of the town

4. An IS fighter walks near a black flag belonging to the Islamic State near Kobani

14. Kurdish refugees from Kobani sit in front of their tents in a camp in the southeastern town of Suruc

15. Islamic State is trying to seize Kobani, which is predominantly Kurdish, and has ramped up its offensive in recent days despite being targeted by US-led coalition airstrikes aimed at halting its progress

16. Turkish Kurds look at Kobani as they stand on top of a house near Mursitpinar border crossing. Continue through for more pictures

Reporter Jenan Moussa, positioned just 500m over the border in Turkey, told Sky News: "I can still hear shooting and shelling but (it is) nothing compared to Monday.

"I heard and I saw three airstrikes. One on the western side and two on the eastern."

Meanwhile, officials in Baghdad say IS militants have downed an Iraqi military helicopter near the refinery town of Beiji, killing the two pilots on board.

A military aviation official said the militants used a shoulder-fired missile to take down the Bell 407 helicopter north of Beiji on Wednesday. The town is home to Iraq's largest oil refinery and is located about about 130 miles north of Baghdad.

It comes after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan warned Kobani was "about to fall".

Canada has also now agreed to join the coalition of forces carrying out airstrikes against IS in Iraq.

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Canada Authorises Airstrikes Against IS In Iraq

By Sky News US Team

Following a request from the US, the Canadian parliament has voted to authorise airstrikes against the Islamic State militant group in Iraq.

The motion introduced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative Party passed 157-134 on Tuesday.

It allows airstrikes in Iraq for up to six months, and explicitly rules out using ground troops in combat operations.

The combat mission includes up to six CF-18 fighter jets, a refuelling tanker aircraft, two surveillance planes and one airlift aircraft.

IS forces launching an assault of Kobani

About 600 airmen and airwomen will be involved.

"The threat posed by ISIL is real," Mr Harper said in a statement, referring to the Islamic State by one of its acronyms.

Video: The Brutal Battle For Kobani

The US has been bombing IS in Syria for more than two weeks with the help of Arab allies, and hitting targets in Iraq since August.

European countries have joined the campaign in Iraq but not in Syria.

It is unclear how effective the airstrikes are in weakening the group.

IS appears close to capturing the strategically important town of Kobani near the border with Syria.

The White House welcomed Canada's deployment.

"Canadians and Americans have fought alongside each other in several major conflicts over the past century, and we are grateful for Canada's further contribution against terrorism," a White House statement said.

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Ebola Dead Abandoned On Streets After Strike

Ebola victims are being left on Sierra Leone's streets because of a strike by burial teams, according to media in the country.

The workers, who arguably have one of the world's most dangerous jobs, complain they have not been paid.

The situation is "very embarrassing", said health ministry spokesman Sidie Yahya Tunis.

He promised money was available for the workers.

"We haven't been paid for two weeks, so we need our money right now," said one angry worker.

"We don't even care if dead bodies have been littered all over the city - all we want is our money. We've been stigmatised in our communities, so let the government pay us our money."

Sky's Alex Crawford saw first-hand the extreme precautions burial teams in the region have to take as they retrieve corpses.

Teresa Ramos says she followed all the safety procedures

She said teams in neighbouring Liberia - the worst affected country with more than 2,000 deaths - were overwhelmed, with "not enough hours in the day for them to track down the dead".

Any temporary halt in collection only adds to the risk of further infection because the virus can stay on the bodies, said Sky's Health Correspondent Thomas Moore.

Video: Suiting Up In An Ebola Hotspot

Six hundred people have died from the virus in Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organisation, and more than 3,400 in total.

The virus has swept through Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, with the World Bank saying the financial impact could hit $32.6bn (£20bn) by the end of the year

A Spanish nurse continues to be treated in a Madrid hospital after becoming the first person outside Africa to contract ebola.

Teresa Romero, 40, told El Mundo she had no idea how she contracted the virus and that she followed all precautions.

Video: Online Appeal To Save Ebola Dog

Another three people are also quarantined at the hospital, including the woman's husband - who has made a video appeal for authorities not to destroy the couple's dog.

Some 50 other people - who either had contact with Mrs Romero or treated one of the two missionaries who died at the hospital - are also being monitored.

Spanish leader Mariano Rajoy has called for calm and promised "transparency" over the scare, which has raised questions over whether strict safety rules were properly followed.

In Britain, David Cameron is chairing a meeting of the COBRA emergency committee as four hospitals stand by to handle any UK cases.

Video: UK 'Lacks Ebola Experience'

The UN, meanwhile, has said one of its medical officials in Liberia has tested positive for ebola and is receiving treatment.

The unnamed official is the second member of their mission to contract the virus - the other died on 25 September.

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Ebola: Seven Facts About The Deadly Disease

Ebola is a virulent virus that has killed thousands during the latest outbreak and is notorious for its low survival rate among sufferers of the full-blown disease. Here we explain what it is.

What is ebola?

Ebola is a virus that can develop into a full-blown disease known as ebola haemorrhagic fever (ebola HF) or ebola viral disease (EVD), which in some patients leads to massive internal and external bleeding.

Contrary to popular belief, it is not flesh-eating, but destroys living tissue cells, which leads to the haemorrhaging, or bleeding.

Is it always fatal?

Video: Deadly Plague: In Ebola Country

The average fatality rate is 50% but case fatality rates have varied from 25% to 90% of people who contract the full-blown disease. It is not known why others survive.

Around 70% of those who have contracted ebola during the latest outbreak have died.

How is it transferred?

Ebola is transferred from person to person through contact with the blood or secretions of other bodily fluids of infected people.

It can also be caught from infected animals or during burial ceremonies in which mourners come into contact with dead victims.

Video: Ebola Outbreak: On The Front Line

Sufferers who are recovering after surviving the infection are known to have passed on the virus through sexual intercourse.

What are the symptoms?

Ebola often starts with a rapidly developing fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headaches and a sore throat.

This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, a rash, kidney and liver problems and bleeding.

In some patients death can be very painful, as the disease destroys connective tissue and also attacks skin and internal organs. The time from infection through to appearance of symptoms is between two and 21 days.

Video: Body Retrieval Worker Mark Korvoyan

How can it be prevented or treated?

There is no vaccine for ebola. Besides intensive supportive care to replace lost fluids (eg oral rehydration solution), the only medicine for the illness is ZMapp.

The experimental drug has been credited with saving lives since it was tested on sufferers for the first time this year.

However, it has not yet been subject to randomised clinical trials to establish its safety and whether it works.

Where does it come from?

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1. Gallery: The Desperate Fight To Contain The Ebola Outbreak

   A man rests outside the clinic.

2. A woman is comforted after medical officials remove her husband, who is suspected of having the disease.

3. Officials try to prevent themselves from spreading the disease.

4. A local who has just brought his brother to the centre. He had to rely on plastic bags tied around his hands to try to protect himself.

5. A man thought to be infected with ebola waits for treatment.

6. Patients wait to be seen by medical staff.

7. Workers try to decontaminate themselves.

8. A worker with a child who may have caught ebola.

9. A make-shift hand-washing station in Monrovia.

10. Decontaminated boots of medical staff.

11. The basic conditions make containing the disease very difficult.

The disease was first identified in Zaire in 1976, in a part of Africa that is now part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It is believed that fruit bats may be one of the hosts and is also known to be present in monkeys and apes.

It is thought it may have made the leap from animal to human through the custom of consuming bush meat, which is common in some parts of Africa.

How dangerous is it?

It is classified as a level 4 biohazard, regarded as the most dangerous and requiring decontamination for those who work with it.

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India Axes 'Laughable' Laws From British Rule

India is to repeal nearly 300 obscure laws dating back to the British Raj.

Among the archaic rules to be scrapped is a decree making it a criminal offence to unearth and keep treasure worth as little as 10 rupees (10p) because it still belongs to the British monarch.

A law from 1838 dictating that property in an area of the former imperial capital of Calcutta can only be sold to the East India Company, which laid the foundations of the British Empire but ceased to exist more than 150 years ago, is also set to be chopped.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who took up office earlier this year, has made it one of his priorities to weed out 287 obsolete laws, after failed attempts by previous administrations. They are due to be axed during a session of Parliament in November. 

Mr Modi has made axing obsolete laws a priority

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who is leading the legislative clean-up, said: "Some of the laws on our books are laughable. Others have no place in a modern and democratic India."

Another obscure rule to be scrapped is an act making flying kites or balloons without police permission illegal across India as they are classified as an 'aircraft'.

A World War II decree outlawing the dropping of leaflets from the air in the state of Gujarat will also go.

And motoring laws stating that car inspectors in the state of Andhra Pradesh must have a clean set of teeth and anyone with a "pigeon chest, knock knees, flat foot, hammer toes and fractured limbs" is disqualified from driving will cease to exist too.

The Indian Government hopes that less regulation and faster decision-making will make India a less puzzling place to do business and attract more foreign investment.

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Ebola Outbreak: Four Quarantined In Spain

A Madrid nurse who became the first person to contract ebola outside of Africa is being treated with antibodies from survivors of the illness, hospital officials have revealed.

Four people, also including her husband, have been placed in quarantine at the hospital over fears they may also have the deadly virus.

The nurse was part of a medical team at the city's La Paz-Carlos III hospital that treated two Spanish missionaries who died shortly after returning from Africa with the disease.

A second nurse who also helped treat an infected priest is among the four being monitored by health workers, as is a man who arrived on a flight from Nigeria displaying symptoms.

Spain's health authorities said they had been in touch with a total of 22 people who are thought to have been in contact with the 40-year-old nurse, whose name has not been released.

Video: Spanish Nurse Contracts Ebola

They are also monitoring around 30 other members of the health care team that treated one of the missionaries.

Officials added that although the nurse began a holiday after one of the missionaries she had been caring for died on 25 September, she did not leave Madrid during this time.

She began feeling ill on 30 September and was diagnosed with ebola on Monday, but is in a stable condition.

EU countries have demanded an explanation from Spain's health minister as to how the nurse caught the disease, despite all the precautions taken

Video: Body Retrieval Worker Mark Korvoyan

A spokesman said a letter sent to the health minister sought "to obtain some clarification" from Spanish authorities, adding: "The priority remains to find out what actually happened."

Spain's health minister, Ana Mato, said an emergency protocol is in place and that authorities are working to establish the source of the contagion at the Madrid hospital.

"We are working to guarantee the safety of all citizens," she said.

In the US, President Barack Obama says airport screening measures are being stepped up in the country to help identify people who might have the deadly virus.

Video: Spanish Nurse Contracts Ebola Virus

More than 3,400 people have died in the latest ebola outbreak, which has swept through West African countries Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

Meanwhile, the British Army said more than 100 British Army medics were being sent to Sierra Leone to help tackle the ebola crisis within the next few weeks.

Personnel from the 22 Field Hospital have been undergoing an extensive training exercise in full protective suits, with simulated casualties in make-up.

They will staff a field hospital set up specifically to treat medics who have caught the disease, not members of the general public.

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1. Gallery: The Desperate Fight To Contain The Ebola Outbreak

   A man rests outside the clinic.

2. A woman is comforted after medical officials remove her husband, who is suspected of having the disease.

3. Officials try to prevent themselves from spreading the disease.

4. A local who has just brought his brother to the centre. He had to rely on plastic bags tied around his hands to try to protect himself.

5. A man thought to be infected with ebola waits for treatment.

6. Patients wait to be seen by medical staff.

7. Workers try to decontaminate themselves.

8. A worker with a child who may have caught ebola.

9. A make-shift hand-washing station in Monrovia.

10. Decontaminated boots of medical staff.

11. The basic conditions make containing the disease very difficult.

An Army spokeswoman said: "They are going through all their procedures and getting atuned to wearing their personal protective equipment, working in quite hot temperatures."

Experts say quarantine systems in developed countries including the UK, US and Spain mean the disease is very unlikely to spread to the same extent seen in poor African countries.

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Kobani 'About To Fall' To Islamic State

Turkish President Recep Erdogan says Syrian border town Kobani is "about to fall" to Islamic State militants and that a ground operation is needed to defeat the group.

It comes as fresh airstrikes targeted fighters who have been bombarding the town with machine-gun fire and shells.

Plumes of smoke billowed into the air over Kobani after jets launched the attack, believed to have been part of the US-led mission.

IS fighters raised their black flag over two buildings in the key border town after a day of heavy fighting on Monday.

Kobani is just over a mile from Turkey

The militants were reported to have moved into the southwest of Kobani overnight, taking several buildings to gain attacking positions on two sides of the town.

Fierce fighting raged in the area over the weekend as local Kurdish fighters struggled to hold out against rocket and mortar attacks - despite support from another three US strikes.

Video: New Strikes Target IS At Border

But Jenan Moussa, a reporter just 500m over the border in Turkey, told Sky News that the fighting was much quieter compared with Monday when bullets were "flying over our heads".

"I can still hear shooting and shelling but nothing compared to yesterday," she said.

"I heard and I saw three airstrikes. One on the western side and two on the eastern."

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1. Gallery: IS Attacks Town Near Turkish Border

   Turkish army tanks take up position on the Turkish-Syrian border near the southeastern town of Suruc in Sanliurfa Province

2. Kurdish fighters vowed not to abandon their increasingly desperate efforts to defend the Syrian border town of Kobani from Islamic State militants pressing in from three sides and pounding them with heavy artillery

3. Despite the heavy fighting, which has seen mortars rain down on residential areas in Kobani and stray fire hit Turkish territory, a Reuters reporter saw around 30 people cross over from Turkey, apparently to help with defence of the town

4. An IS fighter walks near a black flag belonging to the Islamic State near Kobani

14. Kurdish refugees from Kobani sit in front of their tents in a camp in the southeastern town of Suruc

15. Islamic State is trying to seize Kobani, which is predominantly Kurdish, and has ramped up its offensive in recent days despite being targeted by US-led coalition airstrikes aimed at halting its progress

16. Turkish Kurds look at Kobani as they stand on top of a house near Mursitpinar border crossing. Continue through for more pictures

Turkey has massed a line of tanks close to the border in a show of force should IS cross the line into its territory.

At least 400 people - fighters from both sides, and civilians - have been killed during three weeks of fighting around the town, according to British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

It said it had documented the deaths from sources on the ground but added the real figure could be double.

Video: Firework Attacks In Istanbul Unrest

Sky News Foreign Affairs Editor Sam Kiley said the Kurds were angry that they had not been getting enough air support.

"If (Kobani) falls then symbolically and strategically it will send a message to the Kurds that the coalition is not going to come to their aid."

IS began its advance on Kobani on 16 September, prompting weeks of street battles and forcing around 160,000 people to flee into Turkey.

Video: Turkey Turns Water Cannon On Kurds

The group - who last week murdered British hostage Alan Henning - controls large areas of Syria and Iraq and wants more territory for its 'caliphate'.

Violent clashes were reported overnight in Istanbul and other Turkish cities as hundreds of demonstrators angered at the IS advance clashed with police.

Protesters set up barricades, threw stones, fireworks and petrol bombs at police in some Istanbul neighbourhoods, said the country's Dogan news agency.

Video: Desperate Help Needed In Kobani

Police also reportedly used tear gas and water cannon on protesters in the Kurdish-dominated cities of Diyarbakir, Batman, Van, Sirnak, Sanliurfa and Hakkari.

Tensions in Turkey - a member of the NATO alliance - are rising after its parliament last week authorised military action if necessary.

The order allows incursions into Syria and Iraq to counter the threat "from all terrorist groups" and also means NATO powers could use the country as a base for airstrikes.

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Face-To-Face With The Dying In An Ebola Centre

By Garwen McLuckie, Sky News Cameraman

Before filming inside the high-risk zone, we were told that all or equipment would have to be either disinfected or incinerated.

I had prepared hard - bringing tailor-made plastic sealed containers for the small DSLR camera I would be using and rigging up microphones for Sky News Correspondent Alex Crawford to carry under her clothing, or in a waterproof "dry sack".

In the end, none of them worked, but we were saved by our DSLR camera mike, which provided astonishing sound quality despite being smothered in plastic.

On arrival at the unit, we were first taken to a wooden shed so we could change into medical scrubs.

I felt confident, even excited about the challenge ahead as we moved to a small room be prepped for the high-risk area.

Each person was assigned a nurse to help us dress and to make sure we were properly covered.

First we had to put on large plastic socks which went up to our calves and white plastic boots.

Health workers secure protective body suits with duct tape

Then there was a hairnet, followed by a plastic PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) onesie which zipped right up to my neck and had a double sticky seal down the zip.

The first of three latex gloves went on and were sealed on to the onesie by duct tape round my wrist.

The onesie had its own hood which I pulled over my head, followed by a surgical mask over my mouth and nose.

I was then given another separate hood which went over my head and shoulders, covering my forehead, chin and neck. By this stage I was really feeling the heat and the humidity.

Alex Crawford with extra equipment used for filming in the virus zone

A huge yellow plastic apron was draped over me before my face was finally sealed by goggles. Not even a millimetre of my skin was exposed under these three layers of protection.

Almost immediately I was struggling with the heat and an extreme claustrophobic sensation which I had never experienced before - I wondered how long I would last.

Within a very short time, perspiration was filling my face mask, covering my nose and mouth and I could feel the bubbling of my own sweat as I kept trying to suck in air.

There didn't seem to be much of it.

Alex Crawford speaks to an ebola survivor in a quarantine area

At one stage while Alex was talking to one of the ebola victims I had to close my eyes whilst filming to try to calm myself.

I kept thinking: "I can't breathe, I can't breathe."

After filming for an hour, it took a painstaking 10 to 15 minutes to strip off each layer and be carefully disinfected each time.

The doctor could see I was anxious to get everything off but it was essential to observe all the health protocols.

My upbringing means I always give way to women, letting them through doors first and so on.

But in this case I think I would have rugby-tackled Alex to the ground if she hadn't let me go through the disrobing procedure before her.

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Ebola Deaths Hidden As Fear Grips Liberia

By Alex Crawford, Special Correspondent, Monrovia

Liberia's few ebola treatment centres are overwhelmed with the sick and dying - with patients sharing beds and the dead laying near the desperately ill.

The country has accounted for more than half of the world's deaths from the latest ebola outbreak in West Africa and despite assurances from President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that it is under control, evidence on the ground seen by Sky News appears to suggest otherwise.

Whole communities are gripped with fear about the virus - and terrified citizens prefer to die alone, unaided because of the stigma attached to admitting to the disease.

Dozens of ebola victims are dying in their homes in Monrovia, increasing the chances of the virus spreading.

And official numbers of victims are almost certainly unrepresentative of the real death count because of the lack of co-ordination and nationwide spread of the disease.

Video: Ebola Outbreak: On The Front Line

Small teams of about half a dozen workers set out daily to retrieve the ebola dead - most of whom have died after suffering in secret.

Their relatives are reluctant to admit ebola has caused the death, as this invariably invites ostracism from their communities and targets them as potential virus carriers.

The body recovery squads - still called "burial teams" despite government orders that all ebola victims be cremated - are doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.

They take extreme precautions, wearing multiple protective clothing layers along with goggles, boots, gloves and head coverings to try to stay safe.

Video: Music Protects Against Ebola

Head of Team Three, Mark Korvoyan, told Sky News: "There's no day comes that people don't die in their house. Every day, every blessing day."

There's simply too much work for the recovery teams to do, not enough hours in the day for them to track down the dead.

Even as they were picking up the latest corpses from the Elwa Treatment Centre, a young man was sobbing outside.

He cried: "Oh my God, I was just bringing a phone for my sister. Now they say she's died. What am I going to do? She has children..."

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1. Gallery: The Desperate Fight To Contain The Ebola Outbreak

   A man rests outside the clinic.

2. A woman is comforted after medical officials remove her husband, who is suspected of having the disease.

3. Officials try to prevent themselves from spreading the disease.

4. A local who has just brought his brother to the centre. He had to rely on plastic bags tied around his hands to try to protect himself.

5. A man thought to be infected with ebola waits for treatment.

6. Patients wait to be seen by medical staff.

7. Workers try to decontaminate themselves.

8. A worker with a child who may have caught ebola.

9. A make-shift hand-washing station in Monrovia.

10. Decontaminated boots of medical staff.

11. The basic conditions make containing the disease very difficult.

George Nyumah, like so many of Liberia's citizens, is frantically worried about catching the virus.

So the five children his sister cares for are left alone to fend for themselves in their one-room, corrugated iron shack home.

The eldest is 16, the youngest just two and they all sleep on the dirty mattress which their sick mother lay on in the days before she was taken into the ebola centre.

Their chances of catching or carrying the virus must be very high.

Video: Ebola: A Global Threat

For that reason, their uncle George - and the rest of the extended family - will keep well away for 21 days, just to see if they develop signs of the killer disease.

Even if they survive the virus, they'll have to fight poverty and the community's suspicions in the weeks and months ahead.

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