The destruction of more than half a million birds in Iraq due to six separate cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been reported by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
The organisation duly published details of the outbreak after information was passed to its offices earlier this week by Iraq’s veterinary directorate, which is part of the country’s Agriculture Ministry.
The first of the six cases began on December 16, 2015, with the final case dating from February 7, 2016.
Iraq had previously been free of the virus for almost 10 years.
While the virus itself is reported to have killed 77,101 birds, Iraqi veterinary officials ordered the culling of a total of 641,498 chickens as part of the country’s control measures.
