Afghanistan Starts Mass Bird Cull

A woman feeds chickens in a village outside Kabul (file photo) (epa) March 22, 2006 -- Afghanistan started a bird cull today in areas infected by the potentially deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu.

Azizullah Osmani, the chief of the Agricultural Ministry's veterinary department, says culling has started in Kabul Province. The eastern provinces of Nangarhar, Laghman, Vardak, and Konar will also be affected.

So far, tests have confirmed the presence of the H5N1 virus in birds only in the provinces of Kabul and Nangarhar.

The H5N1 strain is potentially deadly to humans, but no deaths have yet been reported in Afghanistan.

(AFP, Reuters)