Israel on Friday confirmed that the deadly H5N1 bird-flu strain had been found in thousands of poultry, as five people were admitted to hospital and the authorities moved to cull multiple flocks of fowl. Battling the country’s first outbreak of bird flu, the authorities ordered poultry in a quarantined area in the southern Negev desert to be exterminated.
The Israeli government was looking on Wednesday to accelerate its preparations for the pull-out from the Gaza Strip as Prime Minister Ariel Sharon voiced concern about the state of readiness. Sharon was chairing a meeting of a committee specially formed to prepare for the pull-out.
Israel stepped up security measures on Friday ahead of the Jewish Passover festival, sealing off the Palestinian territories, as an opinion poll shows that most settlers will not oppose the Gaza pull-out. The entire West Bank was closed off until Sunday in a bid to avert the threat of attacks during Israel’s most popular holiday.
The Palestinians warned on Tuesday that the United States will torpedo the peace process if it bows to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s pledge to keep control of West Bank settlement blocks. Shortly before flying out to Washington overnight, Sharon vowed to maintain Israeli control over six such blocks.