WHO moves to ease pork fears as cases rise to 257
The global body said the number of confirmed cases in Mexico rose to 97 from 26, with eight deaths confirmed to have been caused by the virus.
The WHO confirmed the tally in the US now stands at 109, with one death.
Other confirmed cases include 19 in Canada, 13 in Spain, eight in Britain, three each in Germany and New Zealand, two in Israel and one each in Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
WHO spokesman Dick Thompson told reporters in Geneva that at least one of the Spanish cases involved a person who had not travelled to Mexico.
Spanish officials said that was a man who apparently got the virus from his girlfriend, who recently returned from Mexico.
Mr Thompson said the flu name change comes after the agriculture industry and the UN food agency expressed concerns the term “swine flu” was misleading consumers and needlessly causing countries to order the slaughter of pigs.
“Rather than calling this swine flu ... we’re going to stick with the technical scientific name: H1N1 influenza A,” he said.
On Wednesday, Egypt began slaughtering 300,000 pigs, even though experts said swine flu is not spread by eating pork.
The WHO raised the pandemic alert to Phase 5 on Wednesday, one step from the highest level indicating a global outbreak.
The WHO’s flu chief, Keiji Fukuda, said yesterday there were no indications in the past day that would prompt the UN body to raise the alert further.
To move from level 5 to level 6 means the WHO believes there is evidence of big outbreaks in at least two world regions and a pandemic is under way.
Yesterday, WHO flu chief Keiji Fukuda said there was nothing in the past day that would prompt the UN body to raise the alert further.
In Mexico, the government is telling citizens to stay home, urging businesses to close for five days and suspending government services.
In the US, health officials said the number of confirmed cases had risen to 109. President Barack Obama told Americans the government was “taking the utmost precautions and preparations” to stop the virus.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon said in a televised address that only essential businesses such as supermarkets, hospitals and pharmacies should stay open, and only critical government workers such as police and soldiers would be on duty from today until Tuesday.
The steps are aimed at stopping spread of the virus, even though the WHO has suggested nations should focus on minimising its effects, not containing its spread.
Several nations have banned travel to or from Mexico, and some countries have urged citizens to avoid the US and Canada. Health officials said such bans would do little to stop the virus.
Scientists believe that, months or even a year ago, a pig virus jumped to a human and mutated, and has been spreading between humans ever since.
China has gone on a rhetorical offensive to squash claims it is the source after some Mexican officials suggested it sprang from China or elsewhere in Asia.
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