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WHO caution on bird flu

BEIJING: Chinese and international health experts wrapped up a workshop on Tuesday on the pressing need for a vaccine against a future strain of bird flu that could pass easily between humans, a WHO spokeswoman said.

``We've been ringing the bells about a possible pandemic for the last three years,'' said Joanna Brent, spokeswoman for the World Health Organisation in Beijing.

``It's not easily transmittable between people now but we have to prepare for the fact that that could change.''

The H5N1 virus has prompted the slaughter of millions of birds across Asia since late 2003, and caused the deaths of at least 163 persons worldwide, according to the WHO.

People are infected through close contact with birds but experts fear the virus could mutate into a strain that can pass between humans, sparking a worldwide pandemic. — AP

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