World

Could a bird flu pandemic spread to humans?

Published

2 years ago

May 10, 2024

Could a bird flu pandemic spread to humans?

The bird flu virus, which was first reported in US poultry farms in 14 states in early 2022, has spread to cows and two humans in the first-ever cases of bird flu in humans in the United States. The same subtype of bird flu is also spreading in other countries, in what experts are calling a “global pandemic for animals”.

US public health officials have been monitoring dairy cow herds, as well as beef and milk products around the country since the first outbreak in cows was reported in March. So far, the US is the only country to have reported bird flu in cattle, but there are fears that it could pose a serious threat to humans, too.

In April, a Texas farm worker contracted the virus in what is believed to be the first-ever transmission of the virus from a mammal – in this case, cattle – to a human. Thankfully, he suffered only mild conjunctivitis – an infection in the eye – and has since made a full recovery. The US’s first-ever bird flu case in a human was reported in 2022 when a poultry farm worker in Colorado was exposed to infected chicken. He reported only fatigue as the main symptom.

However, bird flu can be extremely dangerous for humans. Since the virus – also known as Avian Influenza – was first detected nearly three decades ago in China, some 860 people have been infected by birds in 23 countries, including China, Egypt, Vietnam and Turkey, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Of those, 463 people died from the virus, giving a huge 52 percent death rate.

So far, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has detected the virus in more than 200 cows, 9,000 wild birds and some 90 million chickens across the US.

On Friday last week, Canada began implementing stricter import checks for US cattle, following similar measures in Colombia.

So how is bird flu spreading, and could it become a more serious threat to humans?

What is bird flu?

Bird flu is a viral infection that primarily affects birds. Some strains of bird flu can, however, also be infectious to other animals, including humans.

Bird flu belongs to the Influenza A group, one of four types of influenza, and the only one known to cause flu pandemics.

There are also subtypes of avian influenza. Three of these – H5N1, H5N6 and H7N9 – have been found to cause illness in humans as well. While the letters in the names of these subtypes refer to a combination of proteins found in bird flu, the numbers indicate the subtype.

The first and best-known subtype of bird flu is H5N1, which was first identified in domestic geese in the Guangdong province of southern China in 1996. This is the subtype of bird flu which is currently affecting birds and cattle in the US.

In birds, the virus is likely to cause severe disease and death. Cows, particularly older ones, have displayed symptoms such as reduced appetite and lactation when infected.

“This particular strain of the H5N1 virus has been causing a global pandemic for animals – the term is an epizootic disease – and it has affected a lot of domestic poultry production,” said Meghan Davis, associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and trained dairy veterinarian.

How widespread is bird flu among cattle in the US?

Since late March, H5N1 has been reported in around 200 animals in 36 dairy cattle herds in the US states of Colorado, South Dakota, Kansas, Michigan, North Carolina, Idaho, Texas, Ohio and New Mexico.

Some experts suspect that the outbreak may have begun to spread to cows before March – even as early as late 2023 – but was not reported.

“What we don’t know is just how widespread this might be”, said Davis. “This is something where we need lots of surveillance, lots of eyes on this, lots of different ways of looking at the challenge.”

Could bird flu spread to cattle in other countries?

Although there have been no confirmed cases of bird flu in cows beyond US borders so far, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that there is a risk of it spreading internationally through the movement of migratory birds.

“With the virus carried around the world by migratory birds, certainly there is a risk for cows in other countries to be getting infected,” said Wenqing Zhang, head of WHO’s Global Influenza Programme, at a news briefing in Geneva in late April.

Dairy cows in their pen at a cattle farm in Rockford, Illinois, US on April 9, 2024 [Jim Vondruska/Reuters]

How dangerous is bird flu for humans?

H5N1 is described by the CDC as “highly pathogenic”, meaning it is “strongly able to cause disease”, in birds. But it has also proved to be deadly to humans in past cases. Only 860 people around the world have contracted the virus since it was first discovered in 1996, but more than half of those have died from it, according to the WHO.

Farm workers or others in direct contact with infected animals are most at risk. Beyond that, humans are unlikely to be able to transmit the virus to each other, although there was one suspected case of human-to-human transmission in Indonesia in 2006.

In humans, bird flu can cause a range of symptoms within two to eight days after infection. This ranges from fever, cough, sore throat and muscle aches, to more severe effects such as pneumonia and organ failure.

How do we treat bird flu in humans?

There is no vaccine for bird flu in humans. Infected people are typically prescribed antiviral medication such as oseltamivir or zanamivir to manage the symptoms. Health authorities including the CDC recommend administering such drugs as soon as symptoms begin.

How do farmers deal with outbreaks of a virus?

In most parts of the world, farmers cull animals which have been exposed to an outbreak of a deadly virus such as bird flu. Early in April, for example, a poultry farm in Texas destroyed 1.5 million chickens to curtail the spread of bird flu.

So far, there have been no reports of cattle being culled. This is because bird flu has so far not been as deadly in cows as it has in chickens and turkeys, said Andrew Stevens, assistant professor of agricultural and applied economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

“In this setting, culling would be an extreme and costly step to prevent further spread of the disease. This is especially true because we don’t yet have as good a sense of how contagious the bird flu virus is between cattle,” he said.

How is bird flu transmitted to farm animals and humans?

Bird flu can be spread by wild birds and waterfowl such as ducks and geese through their droppings or secretions such as saliva.

When poultry or other animals scavenge environments which have been contaminated or have come into contact with infected birds, they can catch the virus too. Infected wild birds may also be present on farms and come into contact with water or feed that cows consume, although researchers are still studying such potential modes of transmission, said Davis.

In cattle, it is still not fully understood how the virus passes from one cow to another, but traces of the virus in milk suggest a heavy viral load can often be found in the mammary glands. Higher viral load in milk compared with respiratory tracts of cows may also point to the routes of exposure of the virus.

Scientists suspect, therefore, that the virus spreads when cows are milked, as equipment may become infected or the virus may become aerosolised – suspended in the air – during cleaning.

Humans who have close or prolonged contact with farm animals or wild birds can become infected when the virus enters their system via the eyes or mouth, or when droplets or small aerosol particles are inhaled via the nose.

Can you contract bird flu from milk and beef products?

Since April, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tested 297 milk products, including milk, cottage cheese and sour cream. Traces of the virus were found in 20 percent of an initial 96 samples but additional testing has confirmed that pasteurisation – a heating process used by farmers to screen out harmful pathogens and bacteria from farm products – kills the virus, removing the danger for consumers.

Experts and public health authorities including the CDC strongly advise people to only consume pasteurised dairy products, not just because of avian flu but also to avoid bacterial infections such as salmonella and brucella.

Beef samples tested by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have so far tested negative for bird flu, but official advice from the FDA remains against consuming raw beef.

Aren’t all dairy products pasteurised?

There is a growing movement against food regulation, seen by some in Western countries such as the US as a symbol of freedom. In 2015, for example, Wyoming passed the Food Freedom Act which allows farmers to sell raw milk and other farm goods directly to customers.

Australia, the only country apart from Canada with a blanket ban on raw milk sales, also has a growing “Raw Milk Movement” which advocates for regulated distribution of unpasteurised products. Such regulations would include hygienic production and packaging of the milk, as well as testing for active harmful pathogens.

While 30 US states allow sales of raw milk, federal law prohibits the distribution of unpasteurised milk across state lines. Additionally, milk from sick cows must be discarded completely under federal law. In cases where raw milk has been packaged before cows are found to be ill, however, products with traces of the virus could still make it to store shelves.

Although such a study has not been conducted on humans due to research ethics, US studies of cats which consumed raw milk infected with H5N1 showed that the cats became sick or even died as a result.

How are the authorities in the US responding to the bird flu outbreak?

Experts and public health authorities such as the CDC say they have been studying bird flu for decades now, and that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to positive shifts in terms of preparing for outbreaks.

Regulatory authorities are also stepping up surveillance of viruses. In late April, the USDA began to require all dairy cattle moving between states to be tested for bird flu.

However, testing at farms within state boundaries is still only done on a voluntary basis, which may not be enough to curb the spread of the virus, said Davis.

“What I would like to see happen is a switch from what we would consider to be more passive surveillance where we are waiting on farmers and workers to tell us that they’re having a problem, to a more active surveillance where we’re really trying to understand the scope of the problem,” she said.

One way to do this is through antibody serology testing, she said, whereby samples of blood or saliva are taken from a human and tested to detect whether their immune system has been exposed to the virus recently.

Another form of testing is polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing, which typically uses more invasive nasal swabs to determine if a person is currently infected and may not be best suited for those who are asymptomatic or have not had very high exposure to a virus, said Davis.

Rural populations in the US may especially be at a disadvantage during the outbreak, as they can lack access to healthcare services and personal protective equipment, she added. Medical centres may be far away and these populations may be unable to afford services. “And if they [farmers] are not interested in having cows tested, then would the workforce even have the opportunity to get tested? That’s unclear,” she said.

How are other countries reacting to the US bird flu crisis?

In late April, Colombia became the first country to limit trade with the US because of bird flu in cows. It has restricted imports of beef and beef products from states where cows have tested positive for the virus.

Mexico, a major market for US beef and dairy products, has also increased surveillance of cattle entering the country for any sign of respiratory distress, the agriculture ministry said.

On Friday last week, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency also tightened import controls relating to US cattle, introducing a requirement for exporters to provide negative bird flu test results for lactating dairy cattle as well as mandatory testing of retail milk to check for traces of the virus.

Stevens said such measures are important for the long-term sustainability of supply chains. “Although increasing import checks of cattle and dairy products from the US may slightly increase the relative costs of US exports, these costs are small relative to the potential impacts of an import ban or moratorium.”

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World

Key Oscar moments: Paul Thomas Anderson and Amy Madigan wins, outstanding songs and sad goodbyes

Published

3 hours ago

March 16, 2026

Press Room

Key Oscar moments: Paul Thomas Anderson and Amy Madigan wins, outstanding songs and sad goodbyes

This Oscar cycle’s heavyweight battle is finally over. The politically charged action comedy “One Battle After Another” just managed to outmuscle Ryan Coogler’s musically driven vampire thriller “Sinners.”

It was a 3 hour and 40 minute whirl through cinema and celebration, with Michael B. Jordan winning best actor for “Sinners” and Jessie Buckley winning for “Hamnet,” making her the first Irish performer to ever win in the category.

There was electricity when Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman and Black person to win the cinematography award for “Sinners,” asking all the women in the Dolby Theatre to stand up because moments like this don’t happen without women “standing up for you and advocating for you.”

Here were some other show highlights:

The battle is over for one filmmaker

Paul Thomas Anderson, one of the most respected filmmakers of his generation, finally won an Oscar. Then he won another. Then he won for best picture.

He first won best adapted screenplay for “One Battle After Another” and then was crowned best director. “You make a guy work hard for this,” he said. Anderson was back onstage for the night’s final award — best picture.

“Let’s have a martini. This is amazing,” he said.

Anderson had been nominated 14 times previously, including five times for screenplays and three times for best director. His films include “Boogie Nights,” “There Will Be Blood” and “Magnolia.”

“I wrote this movie for my kids, to say sorry for the housekeeping mess that we left in this world we’re handing off to them,” Anderson said onstage after winning for his screenplay. “But also with the encouragement that they will be the generation that hopefully brings us some common sense and decency.”

Even Cassandra Kulukundis, who served as the casting director on past Anderson films, hoped he would win an award himself while accepting the first new completive Oscar category in over two decades for “One Battle After Another.”

She beat him to a win by just minutes.

Another long wait for Oscar hardware

Amy Madigan, the night’s first winner, had to wait a long time to celebrate an Oscar win. The gap between her first ever Oscar nomination and first win was 40 years — handing her the record wait for a best supporting actress.

Madigan’s first Oscar nomination was for 1985’s “Twice in a Lifetime,” losing to Anjelica Huston. She won Sunday for playing an unrecognizable and utterly mesmerizing oddball aunt in “Weapons,” a supernatural thriller about missing children. Madigan had earlier picked up wins at the Critics Choice and Actor Awards.

Aunt Gladys’ smeared, heavy makeup, strange hair and large glasses became a popular internet meme and was even played up by Oscars host Conan O’Brien in his opening skit, looking like Gladys as he raced through appearances in other nominated movies chased by children.

On hearing her name, Madigan collapsed into the arms of her husband, actor Ed Harris. Onstage, she thanked film writer-director Zach Cregger for giving her a part in “Weapons” she could “grab by the throat.” She last thanked “my beloved Ed,” adding: “None of this would mean anything if he wasn’t by my side.”

A heavy goodbye to the Reiners

A stage of stars bid farewell to Rob Reiner, led by a long friend and colleague, Billy Crystal.

Crystal kicked off the in memoriam section by saying he met Reiner while cast as a best friend of Reiner’s on “All in the Family” in 1975.

Reiner’s movies included “This Is Spinal Tap,” “Stand By Me,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “Misery,” “A Few Good Men” and “The Princess Bride.”

“My friend Rob’s movies will last for lifetimes because they were about what makes us laugh and cry and what we aspire to be: Far better in his eyes, far kinder, far funnier and far more human,” Crystal said.

Reiner was killed along with his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, in December. Their son, Nick Reiner, has been charged with two counts of murder.

After Crystal’s speech, he revealed a stage filled with stars who shone in Reiner’s films, including Meg Ryan, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Kathy Bates, Kiefer Sutherland, Demi Moore, Jerry O’Connell, Annette Bening, Mandy Patinkin, Fred Savage and Cary Elwes.

In memoriam and Redford

The in memoriam section then highlighted those lost during 2025, like Catherine O’Hara, Diane Keaton, Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall, Brigitte Bardot, Michael Madsen, Terence Stamp, Diane Ladd, Sally Kirkland, Tom Stoppard, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Val Kilmer.

Barbra Streisand then stepped up to honor her co-star in “The Way We Were,” Robert Redford.

“He was thoughtful and bold. I called him an intellectual cowboy who blazed his own trail, and won the Academy Award for best director, and I miss him now more than ever, even though he loved teasing me,” Streisand said.

She then sang a snippet of “The Way We Were,” which she last performed during the 2013 ceremony, when she sang it as an homage to the late composer Marvin Hamlisch.

Two stunning song performances

The Oscars had only two musical numbers but they were Grammy-worthy.

Singer-actor Miles Caton and songwriter Raphael Saadiq performed the deeply bluesy, slinky song “I Lied to You” from “Sinners,” joined by an ensemble that included Misty Copeland, Eric Gales, Buddy Guy, Brittany Howard, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Jayme Lawson, Li Jun Li, Bobby Rush, Shaboozey and Alice Smith in a tribute to the film’s visual and musical style.

The camera swept in and among the writhing bodies in a rollicking, kinetic performance.

“KPop Demon Hunters” later celebrated its win as best animated feature by opening its performance of “Golden” with a fusion of traditional Korean instrumentalists and dance, with dancers in gold waving golden fabric flags. Then Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami — the singing voices behind HUNTR/X in the film — belted out “Golden” as members of the audience waved light sticks.

Then “Golden” won the Oscar for best original song, a first for K-pop.

The coolest part was seeing dancers from each song appear in the other’s, a kind of communication between Delta blues and Asian pop.

‘Bridesmaids’ give us a bouquet

Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Kristen Wiig and Ellie Kemper celebrated 15 years after “Bridesmaids” hit theaters by showing everyone their funny bones haven’t aged.

“Now, we are not good with numbers, but we figured out backstage that means we shot this movie in 1883,” Wiig joked.

The group — presenting best original score and best sound — had fun at the expense of Stellan Skarsgård, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jacobi Jupe of “Hamnet.”

They pretended to read messages from the crowd, including one from DiCaprio that accused Byrne of staring at him. “I have been staring at you,” Byrne replied. “I thought you were somebody else.”

Rudolph leaned into her dimwit persona when she wondered: “Earlier today, when I was counting my money, I asked myself, “What is sound?”

There was also a mini-“Avengers” reunion with Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. presenting best adapted screenplay. And a “Moulin Rouge!” reunion with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. And there was a Pullman family reunion when Bill teamed up with son, Jack.

Second time’s a charm, Conan

Conan O’Brien hit almost every note on Sunday — savage, playful, heartfelt and dumb.

The second-time host predicted he’d be the last human Oscar MC. “Next year, it will be a Waymo with a tux,” he joked.

He also had a jab at Timothée Chalamet, who got into hot water when he seemed to call ballet and opera dying art forms. “They’re just mad you left out jazz,” O’Brien quipped.

He reached for a Jeffrey Epstein joke when he noted that it was the first time since 2012 that there were no British actors nominated. “A British spokesperson said, ‘Yeah, well at least we arrest our pedophiles.’”

But he also got poetic and sweet when he noted that 31 countries across six continents were represented at the Oscars.

“Every film we salute is a product of thousands of people speaking different language, working hard to make something of beauty,” O’Brien said. “We pay tribute tonight, not just to film, but to the ideals of global artistry, collaboration, patience, resilience and that rarest of qualities today: optimism.”

Of course, sometimes his bits fell flat, like the time he used a leaf blower onstage and a gag about memes with Leonardo DiCaprio.

___

For more coverage of this year’s Oscars, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/academy-awards

World

Pope Leo urges war leaders to halt fighting after deadly strike on school sparks outrage

Published

5 hours ago

March 16, 2026

Press Room

Pope Leo urges war leaders to halt fighting after deadly strike on school sparks outrage

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Pope Leo XIV on Sunday called for an immediate ceasefire in the war involving Iran, delivering his strongest remarks yet on the conflict and urging leaders responsible for the fighting to halt violence after deadly strikes that hit schools and civilian areas.

The Associated Press reported the pope made the remarks at the end of his Sunday noon blessing at the Vatican, where he appealed to leaders involved in the conflict to halt the fighting and pursue dialogue instead of continued military escalation.

“On behalf of the Christians of the Middle East and all women and men of good will, I appeal to those responsible for this conflict,” Leo said. “Cease fire so that avenues for dialogue may be reopened. Violence can never lead to the justice, stability, and peace that the people are waiting for.”

Leo did not cite the U.S. or Israel by name, though he appeared to reference an attack in the opening days of the war that struck a school in Iran and killed more than 165 people, many of them children.

IRAN WAR, 11 DAYS IN: US CONTROLS SKIES, OIL SURGES AND THE REGION BRACES FOR WHAT’S NEXT

Pope Leo XIV called Sunday for an immediate ceasefire in the war involving Iran. (Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images)

U.S. officials said the strike may have been based on outdated intelligence, and an investigation into the incident is underway.

The pope said he was particularly close to the families of victims killed in attacks that have struck schools, hospitals and residential areas during the conflict.

He also expressed concern about the impact of the fighting in Lebanon, where aid groups have warned the escalating conflict could trigger a humanitarian crisis.

IRAN VOWS ‘DECISIVE’ SELF DEFENSE AT UN AFTER TRUMP KILLS SUPREME LEADER IN OPERATION EPIC FURY

This picture obtained from Iran’s ISNA news agency shows the site of a strike on a girls’ school in Minab, in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province, on Feb. 28, 2026. (Ali Najafi/ISNA/AFP via Getty Images)

Christian communities in southern Lebanon are of particular concern to the Vatican, as they have long been seen as an important presence for Christians across a largely Muslim region.

For much of the two weeks since the conflict began, Leo has limited his public comments to broader appeals for peace and dialogue while avoiding direct references to the U.S. or Israel – a stance consistent with the Vatican’s longstanding tradition of diplomatic neutrality.

Some Catholic leaders, however, have taken a more direct stance on the conflict.

RED CROSS SHARES AUDIO OF IRANIAN CIVILIAN EXPLAINING SITUATION ON THE GROUND IN TEHRAN: ‘NO RESPITE’

Pope Leo XIV arrives to hold his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican on March 4, 2026. (Alessandra Tarantino/AP Photo)

Cardinal Robert McElroy, the archbishop of Washington, described the war as morally unjustifiable, while Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich criticized the White House for sharing social media posts about the war that included video game-style imagery.

Meanwhile, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin rejected Washington’s characterization of the fighting as a “preventive war,” but said the Holy See continues to keep lines of communication open with all sides.

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“The Holy See speaks with everyone,” Parolin said. “When necessary we speak also with the Americans, with the Israelis and show them what to us are the solutions.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.

Story tips and ideas can be sent to Greg.Wehner@Fox.com and on Twitter @GregWehner.

World

Ministers to discuss extending EU naval mission to Strait of Hormuz

Published

6 hours ago

March 16, 2026

Press Room

Ministers to discuss extending EU naval mission to Strait of Hormuz

European Union foreign ministers are set to discuss extending the bloc’s naval mission Aspides to the Strait of Hormuz at a meeting in Brussels on Monday, according to a person familiar with the matter.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul confirmed that the issue is being discussed, but voiced scepticism about the operation and Germany’s participation.

Aspides is an EU naval operation launched in the Red Sea in response to Houthi attacks on international shipping in February 2024.

Pressure from Washington is growing on European and Asian partners to help secure the key oil transit route, after energy prices surged following US-Israeli strikes on Iran. Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump urged the United Kingdom, France, China and Japan to deploy vessels to the area to protect oil shipments.

Around 20 per cent of the world’s oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran announced last week that it would block the waterway in retaliation for the strikes, and has since attacked several vessels in the area.

Speaking to German public broadcaster ARD on Sunday, Wadephul confirmed that a possible extension of Aspides is under discussion at European level, but ruled out German participation.

He said he did not see an immediate need for such an operation and called on the United States and Israel to provide clarity about their objectives in the war on Iran.

His comments echo criticism from Europeans who argue the US has not shared enough information on the war, its timeline or goals.

US energy secretary Chris Wright said Sunday that the war against Iran would “likely” end in a few weeks. Washington’s efforts to alleviate fears in the energy market have done little to stop oil prices from soaring above $100 a barrel, sparking concerns about inflation and weaker growth.