Report says avian flu entered Nigeria 3 times (CIDRAP) Jul 6, 2006 (CIDRAP News) – Nigeria was the first African nation to report H5N1 avian influenza, and now scientists have found evidence that the virus was introduced into the country at least three separate times, possibly by migratory birds. [News Source]

Bird flu under control: Sudarat (Business Day) Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan Thursday expressed confidence the that Thailand will be completely free of the avian influenza H5N1 virus—bird flu—in the next three years. [News Source]

Bird flu may have entered Nigeria 3 times. Scientists say they've found surprising evidence from Nigeria, the first African nation to report a dangerous form of bird flu, that the virus entered the country at least three times. [News Source]

Bird flu controlled in NW China province. The Ministry of Agriculture announced on Tuesday that the bird flu epidemic in Hotan County of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region had been controlled. [News Source]

Spreading the word on bird flu. Minnesota is gearing up to prevent or handle a potential outbreak of lethal bird flu in the Western Hemisphere by taping a public health announcement in six languages, updating a website and offering recorded information over the telephone. [News Source]

Budget stalemate delays stockpiling of pandemic flu drug. New Jersey's plan to stockpile influenza medicine in case of a flu pandemic is on hold due to the state's budget crisis. [News Source]

Bird flu slipped into Nigeria along 3 distinct routes, scientists say. An outbreak of bird flu in Nigeria this year stemmed not from a single source of the virus, but rather three distinct strains that entered the country at different times, according to a new study. [News Source]

Indonesia bird flu poultry death rate rises (Reuters via Yahoo! Asia News) JAKARTA (Reuters) - The poultry death rate from the H5N1 avian flu virus in Indonesia, the country with the most human bird flu deaths this year, is worsening, possibly due to poor vaccination coverage, a senior government official said on Thursday. [News Source]

Thailand free of bird flu in 3 years, says minister (MCOT) BANGKOK, July 6 (TNA) - Thailand's Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan Thursday expressed confidence the Thai kingdom will be completely free of the avian influenza H5N1 virus--bird flu--in the next three years. [News Source]

Ames lab prepares for avian flu testing (Iowa Farmer) AMES (AP) -- The government’s elaborate network for diagnosing bird flu will eventually come down to a sprawling 640-acre campus in the Iowa countryside where strict security is the only hint of the crucial role scientists there could play. [News Source]

CANADA: Winnipeg lab can’t verify bird flu virus (Grand Forks Herald) The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has closed the book on an avian influenza incident in Prince Edward Island after it was unable to verify that a goose that died there was infected with an H5 avian flu virus. [News Source]