The United States issued guidance to its citizens on Monday advising against travel to Rwanda due to the spread of the highly dangerous Marburg virus.

The U.S. Department of State confirmed that it advises U.S. citizens to "reconsider" any trips they plan to take to this country due to the presence of the Marburg virus on its territory.

The department raised its travel advisory for Rwanda from a Level 2 warning to a Level 3 warning on a scale of 4 ascending levels. A Level 3 warning means "Do not travel there."

Since the announcement of the first Marburg cases on September 28, the number of people who have died from the virus has risen to 12, most of whom were healthcare workers. The fatality rate for this virus is 88%.

According to the Rwandan Ministry of Health, approximately 41 cases of infection have been recorded nationwide.

This extremely dangerous virus causes severe fever often accompanied by bleeding that affects many organs of the body, and it is part of the filovirus family, which also includes the Ebola virus that has caused many deadly outbreaks in Africa.