Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Afghanistan

Afghanistan Warned On Possible Bird-Flu Outbreak

A bird market in Kabul (file photo) (AFP)

23 January 2006 -- The UN's Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has warned that Afghanistan faces a risk from bird flu.

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January 23, 2006

The FAO representative in Kabul said the country lies on several bird migration paths and that there is a risk that an infected bird could transmit the virus to local poultry stocks.

Bird flu is transmitted easily among birds and can also occasionally infect humans in close contact with sick birds. Around the world more than 80 people have died from bird flu.

(AFP)

Interview With UN FAO's Erwin Northoff

An expert at the National Virology Laboratory of the Kyrgyz Health Ministry (courtesy photo)

GETTING READY: Many have expressed concern about the ability of Central Asian countries to come to grips with a possible bird-flu outbreak. RFE/RL Turkmen Service correspondent Muhammad Tahir spoke with Erwin Northoff, news coordinator for the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), about the issue. ....(more)

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In Pakistan, Cleaner Fuel Powers Supply, Safety Issues

Rising fuel prices have pushed Pakistan to become a global leader in using compressed natural gas (CNG) to fuel vehicles. More

Family members of missing Baluchs, mostly political activists, rally in protest on the eve of international Human Rights Day in Quetta, Balochistan, on December 10, 2011.

U.S. Hearing On Balochistan Raises Hackles, Awareness In Pakistan

The U.S. Congressional hearing last week on Balochistan, the largest of Pakistan's four provinces, though it was firmly rejected by Islamabad, is being seen in Pakistan as any eye-opener for the state and its security agencies. More