Update on Bird Fly in Eastern Turkey

The outbreak of approximately 20 cases of the bird flu virus in Turkey has been making international headlines as of late. The H5N1 strand of the bird flu is known to have killed many people in China and other parts of Asia. In the eastern province of Van, an area which borders Iran, public officials are trying to address residents' concerns directly. The English-language "Turkish Daily News" reported that Turkish Health Minister Recep Akdag traveled to the eastern town of Dogubayazit  and was met with hostilities as residents accused the government of neglecting them because they are Kurdish. The TDN also reported that the World Health Health Organization (WHO) said the virus was spreading from birds to humans and not person-to-person. The BBC reported that some local residents were also warry of handing over their poultry to government officials. The BBC also said health officials are concerned that the disease will start spreading quicikly in Turkey, and that a 37-year old woman in the eastern Sivas province has also come down with the virus. Reporter Mustafa Yukselbaba, reporting for the Irish Independent, said that the latest child to die over the weekend was Hulya Koyigit, age 11 (ironically the name of a famous Turkish actress). Her brother Mehmet Ali, age 14, and sister Fatma, age 15, also died from the virus. Yukselbaba's report also stated that bird flu hads been detected in two wild ducks near the capital city of Ankara. All of the victims were in close proximity to pultry and some of them reportedly had played with chicken heads. Yukselbaba also reported that six children were being tested for the flu in the Eastern province of Diyarbakir.

For more info:

The Turkish Daily News site is:

http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr

The BBC's site is:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice