Authorities in Fukuoka Prefecture, western Japan, are culling about 93,500 chickens after the H5 strain of bird flu was detected in dead poultry at a farm.
The farm in Munakata City reported on Tuesday that a number of chickens had died. Tests by local authorities found that the virus is likely to be the highly pathogenic H5 strain which has a high death rate. The central government plans further examination.
Police in Fukuoka Prefecture, western Japan, say a man armed with a knife holed up inside a restaurant in Fukuoka City on Tuesday morning and is holding two girls hostage.
They say the girls are aged three and six and are the children of the restaurant's owner. They also say the hostage-taker is a former employee of the store.