The World Health Organization (WHO) is continuing their warnings on the possibility of a major pandemic following the uncontrolled spread of the bird flu.

"While we still have a window of opportunity, we must do everything we can to avert an influenza pandemic, as we simultaneously prepare for a worse-case scenario," says Shigeru Omi, the WHO`s regional director for the Western Pacific

The World Health Organization's Regional Director for the Western Pacific, Dr. Shigeru Omi is calling for an all out war on the deadly avian influenza and warns of the threat of new emerging diseases.

Dr. Omi says, "While we still have a window of opportunity, we must do everything we can to avert an influenza pandemic as we simultaneously prepare for a worse-case scenario. Avian influenza and the earlier outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) are not the only emerging diseases we can expect to confront in this new century

Chinese authorities are denying that a mysterious outreak in Sichuan, which has killed at least 17 people, is SARS or bird flu.

According to state media reports, the killer is likely a bacteria, spread among pigs

Niladri Sekhar Nath - All Headline News Foreign Correspondant

According to scientists at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology, of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, have found the breakthrough