Dead birds found in different regions of Egypt have tested positive for the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, the first such cases in the country, the Egyptian government and a regional official of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

Egyptian cabinet spokesman Magdi Radi told state television that seven cases of bird flu had so far been confirmed in the capital Cairo, its sister governorate of Giza and the southern governorate of Menya.

"The first positive laboratory tests for the seven cases came in at around 3:00 a.m. (0100 GMT) on Friday," he said, adding that the samples were infected with the deadly H5N1 strain.

Radi also said that there were no human cases in Egypt till the moment.

Meanwhile, Hassan el Bushra, regional adviser for emerging diseases of the eastern Mediterranean regional office of the WHO, confirmed to the media that there was an outbreak of avian flu in Egypt.

Earlier in the day, Egyptian state-run TV channels reported that cases of bird flu had been detected in different regions of Egypt, the first such cases in the country.

The official Arabic Nile News TV reported that about 18 dead birds, found in Cairo, Giza, Menya and Qena, had been tested positive for the disease.

Xinhua correspondents on Friday saw dead birds floating on the Nile river in Cairo's southern district of Maadi.

In response to the outbreak, Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazef on Friday chaired an emergency cabinet meeting attended by ministers of agriculture, interior, defense and information.

On Thursday, the Egyptian national committee on fighting against the bird flu disease held a meeting to discuss measures to be taken by the government in case of a possible outbreak.

Scientists have warned that Egypt, sitting on a major crossway for migrant birds in the Middle East and North Africa, could face an outbreak after the disease were found in some other countries in the region, including Turkey and Iraq.

Egypt has already banned the import of live birds and has imposed tough quarantine measures at airports in a bid to keep out bird flu.

In addition, the country has also banned bird hunting to reduce possible human contacts with wild birds.

The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed 91 people worldwide since late 2003, according to the WHO.

Most victims were infected after close contact with sick birds.

Scientists fear that H5N1 could mutate into a form which could easily pass between humans and thus spark a global human flu pandemic.

Source: Xinhua