|
 The Agriculture Ministry's Veterinary and Food General Directorate
said the case was detected last week and confirmed on Jan. 31, when
it banned trade in poultry in local markets and raise the alert
level for the H5N8 influenza A virus.
That strain of flu is highly contagious in birds but has not been
found in humans so far, the directorate said.
It has been spreading across Europe since late last year, leading to
the large-scale slaughter of poultry in several countries, while
other bird flu strains have led to some human deaths in China.
While most strains are currently low risk for human health, the
number of different types and their presence in many parts of the
world at the same time increase the risk of viruses mixing and
mutating - and possibly jumping to people.
[to top of second column] |
(Reporting By Andrei Khalip, editing by Axel Bugge and John
Stonestreet)
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