BRUSSELS, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- A deadly strain of bird flu that has killed three children in Turkey reached the European mainland over the weekend after the virus was detected near Istanbul.
Nine cases of the lethal H5N1 strain have been confirmed in humans in Turkey, European Commission spokesman Michael Mann said, adding that another 46 people were currently being tested.
A spokesman for the Turkish agriculture ministry confirmed that samples from dead poultry in the Kucukcekmece district, which is in the European part of Turkey, had tested positive for bird flu. However, further tests are
required to determine whether the chicken was infected by the H5N1 strain of bird flu, which caused the death of three children in the eastern town of Dogubeyazit last week.
The commission rejected claims that Ankara failed to detect and alert cases of bird flu since the first incidents surfaced in October, saying that Turkey had taken the necessary measures to contain the virus.
So far there are no signs viral mutations which could make the disease spread between humans and pave the way for a human pandemic, the World Health Organization said.
