Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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Iraq Tests for Bird Flu After Girl Dies in Kurdish North
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=10A2553:3919ACA Officials say girl
fell ill about two weeks ago in her hometown, close to borders with
Turkey, Iran Health officials in northern Iraq say they have sent
samples to Jordan for testing after a 14-year-old girl showing bird
flu like symptoms died in the city of Suleimaniya Tuesday.

The officials say an initial test conducted at a local hospital came
out negative for the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, but more samples
were sent to Jordan for further testing.

They say the girl fell ill about two weeks ago in her home town in the
Iraqi Kurdish region, close to the borders with Turkey and Iran.

Health officials in the Iraqi region have been on high alert after
Turkey recently reported human cases of bird flu and subsequent
deaths.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.


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