Guinea-Bissau: More than 300 dead in cholera epidemic

Deaths in the cholera epidemic raging in tiny Guinea-Bissau have passed the 300 mark, prompting authorities to ban the sale of drinks and food by street vendors as well as forbid all traditional ceremonies. The health ministry said on Wednesday that the epidemic has claimed 305 lives and stricken 19,054 people in four months. Sources in the ministry said that despite measures to halt the spread, the four-month-old epidemic was gaining ground.