Saudi bans French horse, bird imports over virus

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) -- Saudi Arabia banned imports of horses and birds from France on Saturday over fears of a possible spread of West Nile virus to the kingdom, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

It quoted the agriculture ministry as saying the ban was prompted by "cases of horses affected by West Nile disease, which affects humans and animals, in some parts of France."

It was not immediately clear whether the decision would affect frozen poultry imports.

Saudi Arabia imports some 40 percent of its chicken, mostly from Brazil and Europe. The oil-rich Gulf Arab state imported an estimated 300,000 tons of chicken in 1998.

France has reported cases of horses affected by West Nile, including one case in October in the southern Camargue marshlands, a major horse-breeding region.

West Nile naturally infects birds and is spread by mosquitoes, which can also carry it to people.

Saudi Arabia is at present battling an outbreak of Rift Valley Fever, a viral disease transmitted from infected livestock to humans which has killed 108 people in the kingdom and at least 97 people in neighboring Yemen.

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