GREECE AVIAN FLU UPDATE; ALL H5N1 HUMAN TESTING

UNCLAS ATHENS 000422 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AMBASSADOR POWELL STATE FOR EUR/OES CONNORS ROME FOR AGRI WIGGINS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETRD ECON GR AVIANFLU SUBJECT: GREECE AVIAN FLU UPDATE; ALL H5N1 HUMAN TESTING NEGATIVE REF: ATHENS 00386 ¶1. (U) Testing on the two men admitted to Agios Nickolaus hospital in Thessaloniki over the weekend has proven negative in both cases, although both men will continue to be monitored after discharge. All other suspected cases have also tested negative. The GoG, provincial and local authorities continue to reassure the public and ensure that its safety and security measures (reftel) are understood and followed. ¶2. (U) The previously reported case of H5N1 in a wild goose on the island of Skyros (75 miles north-west of Athens) was also confirmed yesterday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases of Avian Influenza in migratory birds in Greece to four. RIES