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Diplomats withdrawn amid bug fears
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. State Department has authorized the departure of non-essential diplomats and families based in China and Hong Kong amid concerns over the spread of the deadly SARS virus. The move follows an order from the Pentagon banning U.S. military personnel from traveling to Hong Kong and China for fear they might contract the illness. The ban, officially put into place Wednesday, has already prevented the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier battle group from making a stop in Hong Kong. Instead the ships will remain out at sea Pentagon officials say. Hong Kong, long a popular port stop for the U.S. Navy, is regarded by health experts as the epicenter for the outbreak of SARS or severe acute respiratory syndrome. To date more than 700 people have been infected with the virus in the territory and 17 have died. On Wednesday the World Health Organization (WHO) advised travelers heading for Hong Kong and Guangdong province in southern China to consider postponing non-essential travel. Officials said they had released the rare travel advisory following the cases of at least nine businessmen who had contracted the SARS virus during visits to Hong Kong and taken it back to their home countries. The WHO said there was a "pattern of transmission" of SARS in Hong Kong that was "different from what is being seen in the vast majority of other SARS outbreaks, and is not yet fully understood." 'Authorized departure'The State Department's "authorized departure" program for staff in China and Hong Kong is a voluntary measure providing free flights out for those diplomats who wish to leave. "The department is taking this step due to the risks posed by SARS, the uncertainties of how it is spread and concerns over our ability to obtain suitable medical care or evacuate our affected employees and their families," the State Department said. Around the world SARS -- which was identified late last year in Guangdong, southern China -- has infected more than 2,270 people, killing 80. (Worry in the U.S.) To date it has spread to 15 countries, including the United States, although no one has died from the disease in the U.S. The order to U.S. military staff to avoid SARS infected areas is currently restricted just to Hong Kong and China, although officials say they monitoring outbreaks in other areas. U.S. Pacific Command, based in Hawaii, has also ordered military personnel traveling to Singapore and Vietnam to not to go near hospitals or other locations that might harbor the disease. Officials say they do not have a time frame on how long the order not to visit China will last. The United States has tens of thousands of troops based across Asia, primarily in Japan and South Korea, and hundreds more travel through the region on deployments. On Thursday a team of virus control experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) arrived in Guangdong to begin work they hope will identify the origins of the SARS virus and ultimately lead the way to a cure. (WHO investigation) According to the WHO the outbreak began in Guangdong on November 16 last year, with the province reporting some 1153 cases and 40 deaths since that time. China, which has been criticized for dragging its feet in allowing international experts access to its hospitals and being secretive in its announcing of SARS cases, accounts for than half of all global deaths and infections from the virus. (China under pressure) In other developments: • Dozens of flights into and out of Hong Kong have been cancelled as travellers avoid the territory, with serious implications for the Hong Kong's already recession-hit economy. (SARS impact | Travel warnings and flight cuts) • Hong Kong's government has extended the blanket closure of schools in Hong Kong were shut last week and are to remain shut until April 21, the government announced on Thursday. • Thailand says it will quarantine entire planeloads of visitors from high-risk countries for 14 days if anyone on board was found with symptoms of the deadly flu-like SARS virus.(Thailand gets tough) • Vietnam, one of the first areas to report cases of the mystery disease, has reported one new case of SARS -- a man who visited a relative in a Hanoi hospital where other infected patients were being treated. The case was the first in Vietnam in more than a week, although officials remain optimistic that the outbreak there has been largely contained. -- CNN Pentagon Producer Mike Mount contributed to this report
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