[classygreeneyedblonde]

I just hope our soldiers are careful if they come in contact with any afagahastan people....

[leadhead]

What a great defense against land based troops this is.

[leadhead]

What a great defense against land based troops this is.

[Ratatoskr]

the disease was apparently brought into the country in cattle from Afghanistan and Iraq.

Wait a sec. Iraq is due west of Iran. Afghanistan is due east. This thing came at them simultaneously from opposite directions?

And these two countries are among the few actively pursuing biological weapons?

[RnMomof7]

Infection possible because of biological warfare program gone wrong?? This one scares me...Neithor Anthrax or smallpox frighten me...this one does,big time!

[RasterMaster]

"Iran has tightened security along its borders with the two neighboring countries."

Please, by all means, keep that contained within your borders....we've got something that will eradicate the disease, you'll just have to gather all the Iranians in one town! One nuke will do the rest!

[Centurion2000]

First it was in Pakistan among the Afghan refugees .... now here .... gotta wonder if someone is running some dispersal tests.

[John H K]

This disease is unrelated to ebola; completely different class of virus. Some of the effects are the same. Yet more gross media incompetence.

[Ozymandias Ghost]

This disease is native to the area and outbreaks have been reported on the Pakistani/Afghan border since June of this year ...60 plus cases reported by last month as I recall. It is normally spread from livestock via a tick bite ...it is not considered "highly contagious." I doubt it's biowarfare but who can tell these days

[rebdov]

What happened, their lab had a leak?

[gold]

CRIMEAN-CONGO HEMORRHAGIC FEVER - IRAN
**************************************
A ProMED-mail post
PromedMail
ProMED-mail is a program of the International Society for Infectious Diseases
ISID

[see also:
Crimean-Congo hem. fever - Pakistan (Baluchistan) 20010531.1071
Crimean-Congo HF, suspected - Pakistan (NW Frontie... 20010404.0674
Crimean-Congo HF, suspected - Pakistan (NW Frontier) 20010331.0652
Crimean-Congo HF - Afghanistan, Pakistan 20011004.2409
Crimean-Congo HF - Afghanistan, Pakistan (02) 20011010.2467
Crimean-Congo HF - Afghanistan, Pakistan (03) 20011011.2479
Crimean-Congo HF - Pakistan (NW Frontier): confirmed 20010424.0800

2000
----
Crimean-Congo hem. fever - Pakistan (Baluchistan) 20000925.1651
Crimean-Congo hem. fever - Pakistan (Baluchistan) (07) 20001122.2027
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever - Tajikistan 20000708.1142
Crimean-Congo hem. fever - Iran (Southeast): RFI 20000918.1599

1998
------
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever - Afghanistan 19980509.0911
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever - Pakistan 19980509.0908
Crimean-Congo HF, nosocomial - Pakistan, 1994 19980811.1581]

Date: Sun 14 Oct 2001
From: ProMED-mail
Source: IRNA (Islamic Republic News Agency), Sun 14 Oct 2001
[edited]

The possibility of fatalities in those infected with the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever is 30 percent, Makanali said, adding that the virus is spread by ticks from animal to humans or via patients' bodily fluids such as urine or blood. The symptoms of CCHF are fever, with bleeding from the nose, gums, and bowels and [blood] in urine, the official said, adding that it is transmitted through sheep, cows and camels. He said the Veterinary Organization has been taking precautionary measures to check the spread of the disease by insecticiding the contaminated regions. Some 40 quarantine bases on the borders, 100 movable quarantine bases, and 39 hospitals have been established in this effort.

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever is endemic in parts of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, some of southern Europe, and most of tropical and south Africa. The illness is seasonal, since the ticks emerge in spring, live through the warmer months, and die out in winter. Health experts say that although the symptoms of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever are similar to Ebola hemorrhagic fever, it doesn't spread as quickly, and there is a significantly higher recovery rate.

--
ProMED-mail

[CCHF virus is a member of the genus _Nairovirus_ of the family _Bunyaviridae_. Although classed as a Biosafety Level 4 Pathogen, it is not related either antigenically, phylogentically, or epidemiologically to Ebola fever virus (a filovirus). CCHF is a zoonotic disease, which is an emerging problem with increasing numbers of cases reported each year from many parts of the world. It is maintained by transovarial and transstadial transmission in ticks and transmitted to humans via intermediate mammalian hosts, viremic wild and domestic ruminants being the most dangerous. Infection can be contracted also by direct contact with infected viremic animals during shearing, slaughter, etc. Consequently the disease affects primarily farmers, veterinarians, abattoir workers, and butchers. Likewise the virus can be transmitted directly from human to human, usually in hospital settings. Clinical disease is confined to humans. There is no vaccine, and prevention is by vector control and by quarantine measures to control the movement of infected domestic animals. The latter is difficult to achieve in countries with long land borders, as exemplified by this report. - Mod.CP]

---------------------------------------
This was from 14 October. Should give some insight into the situation.

[Dubh_Ghlase]

Sorry guys, but just too many coincidences...

I believe this started with the hoof & mouth in UK and has been
growing/spreading since then. The chickens are coming home to roost...

[wonders]

It's Crimea-Congo hemorrhagic fever, a tick-borne disease endemic to the area. It is not the doing of terrorists, but naturally-occurring. Outbreaks of this disease could be expected among concentrations of refugees who fled with their animals, and are perhaps sleeping in tick-infested quarters.

For more info, see these FR threads:

Ebola-Like Virus Spreads in Afghan Refugee Camps

Ebola-style killer virus sweeps Afghan border

Ebola-style killer virus sweeps Afghan border