World: Unconfirmed report raises suspicion of Bird Flu virus in Iran

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World: Unconfirmed report raises suspicion of Bird Flu virus in Iran

Friday, 13 October 2006

A newspaper published in Baku, Azerbaijan has reported that about 2,000 dead birds have been found in a water reservoir in Iran near the Armenian border.

According to “Olaylar” (and republished on www.day.az), analyses taken from the carcasses has been sent to laboratories in Tehran and in Italy to determine whether the fowl was infected by Avian Influenza (Bird Flu). The specific reservoir was not named in the article. There are two reservoirs on Iranian territory along the Arax River – the Arax-Hydro Unit in Nakichevan and the Horadiz, which borders Nagorno Karabakh. (Iran and Armenia share borders with the Arax.)Health officials in Yerevan contacted by ArmeniaNow said they had not heard about any such discovery.“I have talked to my Iranian colleague, and he doesn’t have any information, either,” said Grisha Baghyan, head of the State Veterinary Inspection Department of the Ministry of Agriculture. Stepanyan, deputy director of the same department told ArmeniaNow that the border with Iran is carefully monitored by Russian soldiers who are on alert for any suspicion

of potential health hazards, particularly Bird Flu, and that no information has come from them.Stepanyan says that, even if the report is true, Armenia has taken all measures – including stocking up on anti-virus vaccines – to resist any outbreak of the virus.Over the summer, various international agencies, including World Bank, USAID, European Commission and World Food Programme, have provided training, equipment and conducted public awareness campaigns in Armenia.In January, incidents of Bird Flu were reported in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Turkey, near the border with Armenia.

While neighbors had outbreaks, Armenian officials assured that no cases of the virus were found here.Stepanyan said that, due to recent cooperation with international agencies and based on experiences of other countries, Armenia is “even more prepared than we were last year” to combat Bird Flu.

The Ministry of Agriculture plans to open a telephone hotline later this month to aid public awareness of the issue.ArmeniaNow has not yet been able to confirm the Azeri newspaper report. By Siranouish Gevorgyan and nna Grigoryan http://www.sibernews.com/news/world/-200610136053/