Turkish Minister of Health Recep Akdag visits Yusuf Has, who is under treatment for a suspected bird flu virus, at an hospital in the eastern Turkish city of Van January 8, 2006. (Xinhua/AFP)

Yusuf Has, who is under treatment for a suspected bird flu virus, at an hospital in the eastern Turkish city of Van January 8, 2006. (Xinhua/AFP)

    ANKARA, Jan. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- Five more people have been tested positive for bird flu in Turkey, a health ministry official said on Monday.

    These new human cases have brought to 14 the number of Turkish people suffering from the disease, including three who have already died.

    The infected people include two in Kastamonu province, one in Corum province and one in Samsun province in central Turkey and one in Van province in eastern Turkey, Anatolia news agency quoted Turan Buzgan, director general of the health ministry, as saying.

    On Sunday six people were tested positive for bird flu in Turkey among whom five were confirmed to have been infected with the deadly strain of H5N1.

    Meanwhile, bird flu cases have been detected in 16 Turkish provinces, namely, eastern provinces of Agri, Igdir, Erzincan and Erzurum, southeastern provinces of Van, Bitlis and Siirt,northeastern province of Kars, central province of Ankara,Kastamonu, Corum, Samsun, and Yozgat southern province of Sanliurfa, northwestern provinces of Bursa and Yalova.

    Turkey reported its first bird flu outbreak in October 2005 and three children from one family have died of the disease.

    Experts fear that the highly contagious virus could mutate intoa human strain that could cause a worldwide pandemic among human beings.

    The H5N1 strain has so far killed over 70 people since it was first reported in Asia in 2003. Enditem