Baghdad, June 27 (IANS) Bird flu cases were detected in a poultry farm in Iraq's eastern province of Diyala, and necessary measures have been taken to curb the spread of the disease, a health official said.

The new cases were detected in the small poultry farm on June 24 in a village near the provincial capital Baquba, some 65 km northeast of Baghdad, Mahmoud Farhan al-Shammari, head of the veterinary hospital in Diyala, told Xinhua news agency on Saturday.

"We have informed the governor of Diyala and taken necessary measures to control the disease, including the culling of more than 4,000 chickens and closing the poultry farm for 90 days," al-Shammari said.

The rapid response of the veterinary hospital helped prevent the transmission to other areas, he added.

--IANS ksk/