Rwanda says that eight people have died so far from the highly contagious Marburg virus.

The announcement comes just days after the country declared an outbreak of the deadly hemorrhagic fever that has no authorized vaccine or treatment.

Like Ebola, the Marburg virus originates in fruit bats and spreads between people through close contact with the bodily fluids of infected individuals.

Rwanda, a landlocked country in central Africa, declared an outbreak on Friday and a day later the first six deaths were reported.

Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana said on Sunday night that so far, 26 cases have been confirmed, and eight of the sickened people have died.

"WHO assesses the risk of this outbreak as very high at the national level, high at the regional level and low at the global level," the WHO said on Monday. "Investigations are ongoing to determine the full extent of the outbreak and this risk assessment will be updated as more information is received."