Egypt reports 36th death of bird flu

2010-08-27 02:46:32 GMT2010-08-27 10:46:32 (Beijing Time) Xinhua English

CAIRO, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- A 33 year-old Egyptian woman died of the H5N1 bird flu virus on Thursday, bringing the number of such deaths to 36 in the most populous Arab country, said the Egyptian Health Ministry.

According to a statement issued by the ministry, the woman, who comes from Al-Qalubia governorate, north of Cairo, was admitted to hospital earlier this week and treated with the drug Tamiflu but remained in critical condition until she died Thursday, the 9th death of this year.

Egypt is the most affected country by the deadly avian influenza outside Asia. It reported its first H5N1 virus in dead poultry in February 2006 and the first human case in March of the same year.

Most of the victims of the fatal virus in Egypt were young women. Generally, they were in charge of feeding poultry in rural areas.

Egypt's Agriculture Minister Amin Abaza said in July that his country has prepared a national strategy to eradicate bird flu in five years.

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