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| Egypt slaughters pigs to stop flu | Egypt slaughters pigs to stop flu |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| Egypt has begun a mass slaughter of thousands of pigs in an effort to prevent swine flu spreading. | |
| The cull was going ahead despite there being no cases of swine flu in Egypt. However, neighbouring Israel has two confirmed cases in humans. | The cull was going ahead despite there being no cases of swine flu in Egypt. However, neighbouring Israel has two confirmed cases in humans. |
| "It is decided to slaughter all swine herds present in Egypt, starting from today," said Health Minister Hatem el-Gabali, according to Mena news agency. | "It is decided to slaughter all swine herds present in Egypt, starting from today," said Health Minister Hatem el-Gabali, according to Mena news agency. |
| Swine flu has spread from Mexico to several countries around the world. | Swine flu has spread from Mexico to several countries around the world. |
| The pigs in Egypt, a largely Muslim country, are raised by the Coptic Christian community. | |
| Estimates of the number of pigs range from 250,000 to 400,000. | |
| Up to 159 people are believed to have died in the outbreak - all but one of them in Mexico. | |
| Confirmed cases of swine flu have been reported in numerous other countries, including New Zealand, Spain, Austria and Canada, but most have been mild cases. | |
| Many of those victims had been to Mexico, prompting airport screening for passengers displaying potential flu symptoms. | |
| Egyptian authorities increased numbers of medical staff at Cairo airport to check passengers arriving from Mexico and will monitor them during their stay. | |
| Egypt suffered during the outbreak of bird flu, between 2004 and 2008, with 22 deaths reported. | |
| The latest swine flu is a variation of H1N1, which causes seasonal outbreaks of flu in humans on a regular basis. | |
| However, this strain contains genetic material that is typically found in strains of the virus that affect humans, birds and swine. | |
| Pigs can act as a "melting pot" for several flu strains. |