KUWAIT, Feb 25 (KUNA) -- Bird Flu cases were spotted among birds in Kuwait most of them in falcons, but there were no infections among humans, Kuwait Health Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah said Sunday.
The national emergency plan, approved by a joint commission to fight bird flu, has been activated, said Al-Sabah and commended the medical teams for their non-stop monitoring of the places in which the bird flu cases were discovered.
The announcement of the bird flu cases has been made after thorough examinations that proved existence of bird flu virus, Al-Sabah said in a statement.
The bird flu commission held an urgent meeting yesterday to discuss a report from an international laboratory proving that bird flu virus existed in the samples taken from the birds.
The virus existed in 20 samples taken from birds, mostly falcons, which were living in area of Wafra, Zoo and Falcons hospital, explained Al-Sabah.
The Public Authority for Agriculture and Fish Resources Affairs (PAAFRA) has already adopted precautionary measures and informed the World Health Organization (WHO) and liaison officers in the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states about the infected birds, which were immediately quarantined.
The commission said PAAFRA would follow international measures to contain and eradicate the disease.
It said poultry and eggs were safe for human consumption as long as it were cooked by at least 70 degrees celsius. The commission noted that the hot weather would minimize ability of transmission of the virus.
