Health workers have been struggling to contain the outbreak in West Africa
The UN Security Council has declared the outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa a "threat to international peace and security".
The Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling on states to provide more resources to combat the outbreak.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned an emergency meeting of the council that the number of Ebola infections was doubling every three weeks.
More than 2,600 people have now died in the worst Ebola outbreak on record.
Mr Ban said the "gravity and scale of the situation now require a level of international action unprecedented for a health emergency".
He announced the establishment of an "emergency UN mission" working with the World Heath Organization (WHO) to combat the crisis, saying he would convene a "high-level meeting" next week.
The Council heard the international response had to be three times bigger than it was now to contain the crisis.
The resolution attracted 130 co-sponsors - a UN record - and calls on countries to provide urgent aid, such as medical staff and field hospitals.
Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
Current outbreak has mortality rate of about 55%
Incubation period is two to 21 days
There is no proven vaccine or cure
The resolution adopted by the Council also called for travel bans imposed by some states to be lifted, saying the countries needed to have access to aid instead of being isolated.
The Security Council has never previously met to confront a public health crisis, reports the BBC's Nick Bryant from New York.
It is only the second time that a public health issue has been addressed at the council, the first instance being HIV/Aids, our correspondent adds.
A doctor appearing via video link from Liberia warned that if the international community did not step up its response, "we would be wiped out".
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