CAIRO: Egypt is well-prepared to combat the recent outbreak of the swine flu given its experience in dealing with the deadly H5N1 virus, Hussein Al-Gezairy, the World Health Organization's regional director, said. Al-Gezairy however warned that swine flu is a more dangerous epidemic because it can be transmitted between humans. In a press conference Tuesday, the WHO urged people against traveling to Mexico or the US and called on the Egyptian government to get rid of pig farms. Al-Gezairy said that should "emergencies require people to travel, they should "avoid personal contact with others, such as handshaking and hugging. He also told Daily News Egypt that "Egypt needs to get rid of pigs in order to protect itself against the disease. "The government should either slaughter the pigs or transfer them [away from residential areas] to protect people from the disease, he said. Hassan El-Bushra, WHO's regional advisor for emerging diseases, said the regional stockpile of anti-viral drug capsules is located in Dubai. "There are around 3 million capsules in Dubai - enough to treat 300,000 patients, El-Bushra said. However he said that the available drugs can only control the virus in its early stages, rather than kill it altogether; assuring that research is underway for means to combat the disease. "For the time being we want to focus on preservation methods in order to protect ourselves against the disease, he said. In an official media statement released Sunday, the Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs ordered the swift transfer of all pig farms far from residential areas in Egypt. Al-Gezairy echoed the ministry's sentiments, saying it should execute its decision immediately. Earlier on Tuesday, the WHO's emergency committee indicated in a report that the spread of the disease to more countries is likely. The WHO hence raised the level of swine influenza pandemic alert to phase four - for epidemics widely transferred through humans. A phase four epidemic, according to the WHO online report, causes "community-level outbreaks. In Mexico, 150 people have been reported dead after contracting the virus. Fifty confirmed cases of the disease were reported in the US, six in Canada, two in Scotland, one in Spain and two in Israel, who is reportedly recovering. The People's Assembly's health committee urged the slaughter of all farm pigs in Egypt, according to Hamdy El-Sayyed, chairman of the Doctors' Syndicate and head of the PA's health committee. Parliament member Taymour Abdel Ghany called on the government to set up labs to manufacture anti-viral drugs to combat the disease.
