Russia confirms Sars case

Russia has fought hard to keep Sars out

The deadly flu-like virus Sars has spread to Russia, officials have confirmed.

The first known Russian case of the disease was found in the far-eastern town of Blagoveschensk, near the border with China.

The patient, a man aged 25, had been suspected for some time of having the illness.

"The diagnosis is unquestionable: this is Sars," Gennady Onishchenko, Russia's chief epidemiologist, was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.

Border towns like Blagoveschensk were known to be at risk

The man had stayed in a hotel in Blagoveshchensk often used by traders and tourists from China.

Russia has taken strict border measures to try to stop Sars entering.

Some border areas with China have been closed and only those border checkpoints where effective medical monitoring can be carried out remain open.

Russian airlines and freight operators have been told to stop selling air tickets to passengers, or deliver cargo or post to China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Several airlines in the Far East have cancelled their flights to China.

Sars has killed more than 320 people in China, and Russia has long feared that its 3,645-km (2,280-mile) land border with China would prove vulnerable.

Around the world, more than 740 people have died and more than 8,000 have been infected.

Most cases have been in Asia, but Toronto in Canada has also been hit.