Saudi Arabia has culled 50,000 birds at a poultry farm near the capital of Riyadh, which were found to have a deadly strain of bird flu, Saudi media reported on Thursday. An agriculture ministry statement published by newspapers said the birds were culled at the farm in al-Kharj, 150 km south of Riyadh, after 1,500 birds died earlier this week.
The statement said it was not clear how the birds had become infected with the H5N1 virus.
The ministry learned of the deaths on Monday. “All of the birds at the farm were subsequently culled and the area disinfected, with measures taken to ensure other farms in the area were not affected,” SPA quoted the ministry as saying. It added no human cases of bird flu had been found and an investigation was taking place to determine the origin of the illness.© 2007 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
