Poultry from a market in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, has been confirmed infected with the bird flu virus, China's Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) announced on Tuesday.

The birds died in the market on March 1 and tests for the H5 virus by the National Avian Influenza Reference Laboratory are positive, according to the information office of the MOA.

Specialists and officials from the MOA and local government were taking measures to control the virus and prevent further infection in the area, including closure of the market, a cull of poultry in the market, disinfection of the area, inspections of poultry markets, and monitoring of wild birds to prevent the spread of avian influenza.

Specialists believe the virus was introduced by wild birds migrating from east Africa to west Asia as no outbreaks of the disease have been reported in the source areas of the poultry.

Earlier this month three wild birds and two poultry birds tested positive for the H5 virus out of 325 poultry and 20 wild birds tested in Fujian province, where a woman who contracted the disease late last month is in critical condition in the hospital, according to authorities.

(Xinhua News Agency March 7, 2007)