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Anthrax Threat Spreads To Pakistan
KARACHI, Nov. 2 (News Agencies) - A Pakistani minister Friday said deadly anthrax spores had been found at three organizations including a major newspaper, but an official statement later suggested one of the cases could be a hoax.
Science and technology minister Attur Rehman told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that anthrax had been uncovered at a bank, an unidentified company and a newspaper.
"There were three organizations ... these cases have been confirmed but fortunately nobody has been infected," he said. "Four people were treated in hospital, but there was no need for alarm. The hospitals have adequate facilities to deal with such cases."
Pakistan's biggest-selling daily newspaper, Jang, earlier said suspicious white powder in a letter received last week at its southern Karachi office had proved to contain anthrax spores.
"Last week we received this letter and we sent it to the hospital for tests and on Thursday the report confirmed it contained anthrax," editor Mahmood Sham said.
He said microbiologists had been hired to disinfect the Jang building in Karachi and about 80 staff had been put on a 60-day course of antibiotics.
However, a statement from the Press Information Department (PID) said previous anthrax scares in Pakistan had turned out to be false alarms and authorities also had "suspicion" regarding the
Jang case.
"Health authorities also have suspicion regarding authenticity of this case as it is felt that sufficient expertise is not available at the local hospital to confirm the contents of the report," the PID said.
The PID statement made no reference to anthrax being found at any other organizations in Pakistan.
Jang has previously claimed to have received a letter contaminated with the deadly disease at its southwestern Quetta provincial office, but the contents tested negative.
The newspaper's management spokesman, Sarmad Ali, said preventive measures, including providing gloves, were being taken for staff.
"It is not only a concern for us, but for everyone, and we are taking all possible measures including disinfecting our editorial section," he said.
Investigating police officer Majeed Dasti described the anthrax scares as terrorism.
"This is a serious issue. This is terrorism and it can kill people," he said.
A Pakistani man was also said by his doctor to have contracted anthrax last week after a letter containing the potentially fatal disease was delivered to the foreign bank where he worked.
The man was admitted to the Agha Khan hospital in Karachi this week but his condition was not life threatening, said the doctor, on condition of anonymity.
Bio-terror attacks launched in the wake of the September 11th terrorist atrocities in New York and Washington have claimed four lives in the United States, where almost all the confirmed anthrax cases have occurred.
An anthrax scare was also reported in neighboring India on Friday. The deputy chief minister of the western state of Maharashtra, Chagan Bhujbal, said one set of laboratory tests had confirmed that a letter sent to his office contained anthrax.
But he said further tests failed to corroborate the findings and the suspect substance would be examined further.
Another letter suspected of containing anthrax was delivered to the Karachi offices of Dell computer company.
The visa section of the British embassy in Beijing meanwhile remained closed for a third day on Friday as further tests were carried out on powder found in a suspicious package.
Initial tests on the powder, found inside a package opened Wednesday at the visa office in a Beijing tower block near the main embassy, proved negative, the embassy has said.
Anthrax has, however, been discovered in U.S. diplomatic missions in Lithuania and Peru, and are believed to have been sent in mailbags and diplomatic pouches from Washington.
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