China's commercial rocket sends six satellites into space

A commercial rocket lifted off on Saturday in northwest China, successfully sending six satellites into space.

The rocket, coded ZQ-2E Y2, blasted off at 12:12 (Beijing Time) from the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone near the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The satellites aboard the rocket, namely Tianyi-29, Tianyi-34, Tianyi-35, Tianyi-42, Tianyi-45, and Tianyi-46, have successfully entered their planned orbit.

The launch was the fifth mission of the ZQ-2 carrier rocket series.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Sunday declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) and Uganda a "public health emergency of international concern."

The WHO said in a statement that the outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency, as defined under the International Health Regulations (IHR).

The statement said that the director-general of the WHO, under the provisions of the International Health Regulations (IHR), will be convening an emergency committee as soon as possible to advice on the proposed temporary recommendation for state parties to response to the event.

As of Saturday, eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases, and 80 suspected deaths had been reported in DR Congo's Ituri Province, across at least three health zones, according to the statement.

The Bundibugyo virus could cause Ebola hemorrhagic fever, primarily transmitted through direct contact with the blood, body fluids, secretions, or excretions of infected individuals or animals. Clinical symptoms include fever, bleeding and multi-organ damage. The disease has a fatality rate as high as 50 to 90 percent.