(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-06 16:15

A bird flu outbreak in northern China that sparked the culling of about 370,000 birds lies along a migration route that spans from East Asia to Australia, a media report said Sunday, as officials continued killing thousands of birds east of Beijing.

As Indonesia confirmed its fifth fatality from the H5N1 strain of bird flu, and jitters mounted across Asia, Japan was reportedly considering a plan to nearly double its annual contribution to the World Health Organization to help combat the deadly virus.

A Chinese health worker vaccinates Monday a pigeon against bird flu in a house for pigeons hovering over the Quancheng Square each day in Ji'nan, East China's Shandong Province. China is on alert against the avian influenza. [Xinhua]

Around 1,700 Chinese officials and armed police were expected to complete by Sunday the culling of poultry in Liaoning province's Badaohao village, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The Badaohao outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu strain - the fourth in China in three weeks - killed 8,940 chickens and prompted authorities to destroy 369,900 other birds, the government has said.

More than 20 magpies and other migratory birds were spotted in the area, Xinhua said without giving further details.

Chinese authorities have said they are concerned that wild birds might spread the virus, particularly following an outbreak last spring that killed more than 6,000 migratory geese and gulls at northwestern China's Qinghai Lake.

The State Forestry Bureau said last month it was activating a reporting network to detect outbreaks among wild birds.

Meanwhile in Beijing, new regulations went into effect Sunday that allow detention for up to 15 days and fines of up to 200 yuan (US$25) for anyone who fails to immunize their birds, the Beijing Morning Post reported.

The rules, announced jointly by the Beijing Agricultural Bureau and the Beijing Public Security Bureau, are aimed at ensuring a 100 percent bird vaccination rate in the capital, the newspaper said.

No human cases have been reported in China, but authorities warn they are inevitable if the government cannot stop repeated outbreaks in poultry.

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