TAIWAN health authorities said a military medical researcher had contracted SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), sparking alerts across Asia of a possible resurgence of the killer virus.

A medical researcher has tested positive for SARS – Taiwan’s first case since the island was dropped from a global list of infected areas last July, health officials said.

While China was confident about beating SARS, the outbreak worsened in Taiwan, and the US said it would back the island’s disease-fighting efforts by pushing its bid today for status in the World Health Organisation – something opposed by Beijing.

A LAST-MINUTE case has shattered Singapore’s dream of being stricken off the World Health Organisation’s list of SARS-affected countries, after a 39-year-old man was diagnosed with the disease.

The majority of the SARS outbreaks around the world are coming to an end, the World Health Organisation has said, as Singapore announced fears of a SARS outbreak at a mental hospital were unfounded, leaving it on track to declare its epidemic under control.