Egyptian girl (17) dies of bird flu virus

An Egyptian girl has died of bird flu south of Cairo, bringing the number of confirmed deaths from the disease in Egypt to 12…

An Egyptian girl has died of bird flu south of Cairo, bringing the number of confirmed deaths from the disease in Egypt to 12, a World Health Organisation official said yesterday.

The girl has been identified as Nouri Nadi (17) of Fayyoum province. The WHO official said the girl was believed to have been infected after coming into contact with sick and dead birds.

Russia yesterday banned imports of British poultry and eggs, and farmers in Europe took steps to shield their flocks from the possible spread of bird flu from Britain.

In Brussels, the EU's top health official urged veterinary authorities around the EU to be on their guard, warning that further outbreaks were likely in the months ahead.

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"The virus is still around," EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou told reporters.

"We have a system in place; we have to remain vigilant and we have to remain ready to act."

Veterinary experts were to meet today to assess EU animal safety measures. "We should remind ourselves that the virus is around, so we will have probably more outbreaks around the European Union in the future, like last year."

In France, which was hit a year ago by the lethal H5N1 virus strain at a turkey farm in the southeast, agriculture minister Dominique Bussereau ordered the national food safety agency to assess the risks of another outbreak.

The Dutch agriculture ministry ordered birds to be kept indoors or behind protective netting at farms. The Netherlands, a low-lying country is particularly vulnerable to disease carried by wild birds as it sits along a major migratory path.