GOVERNMENTS worldwide must do more to work together in the fight against SARS, the head of the UN health agency said yesterday, as delegates gathered for the WHO's annual meeting, wearing badges to show they have been screened for the virus.

THE World Health Organisation took its SARS probe into rural China, where the health system is a shambles, as reports emerged yesterday of more attacks on quarantine sites in the country by people scared of the disease.

Beijing’s government closed the city’s theatres, Internet cafes and other entertainment venues in an attempt to stop the spread of Sars as the Health Ministry today reported nine new deaths from the flu-like illness nationwide.

Struggling to contain Sars, Beijing officials sealed off a third hospital today, closed college dormitories and ordered 4,000 people who might have been exposed to the killer virus to stay at home under quarantine.

Malaysia today became the latest country to announce a death from a mystery disease that has killed at least 86 people worldwide, while neighbouring Singapore tried to convince a wary public that its own outbreak was under control.