Fri, 14 May 2010 21:38:41 GMT
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Breakout of a bird flu epidemic in a West Bank town has raised fears of likely elimination of the town's complete poultry stock, costing chicken farmers millions of dollars in losses.
At least 750,000 chickens will be slaughtered and destroyed in the town of Bal'a, the Palestinian Authority's (PA) agriculture ministry announced.
Police have cordoned off the area to ensure birds diagnosed with bird flu were not transported out of the area.
The town, which exports 4,000-5,000 cartons of eggs and hundreds of pounds of meat per day to the West Bank, will have its poultry stock wiped out, a PA official said on Friday.
No human cases of the influenza virus have yet been reported, but officials emphasized they are closely monitoring the area to ensure proper containment mechanisms are enforced.
The possible source of the outbreak has not yet been identified.
A team of veterinary specialists is assisting local residents in dealing with the emergency.
At least 40% of the town's economy depends on chicken farming. The Palestinian economy has already been suffering heavily due to various Israeli-imposed blockades and limits on export and import of Palestinian products.
At least 750,000 chickens will be slaughtered and destroyed in the town of Bal'a, the Palestinian Authority's (PA) agriculture ministry announced.
Police have cordoned off the area to ensure birds diagnosed with bird flu were not transported out of the area.
The town, which exports 4,000-5,000 cartons of eggs and hundreds of pounds of meat per day to the West Bank, will have its poultry stock wiped out, a PA official said on Friday.
No human cases of the influenza virus have yet been reported, but officials emphasized they are closely monitoring the area to ensure proper containment mechanisms are enforced.
The possible source of the outbreak has not yet been identified.
A team of veterinary specialists is assisting local residents in dealing with the emergency.
At least 40% of the town's economy depends on chicken farming. The Palestinian economy has already been suffering heavily due to various Israeli-imposed blockades and limits on export and import of Palestinian products.
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