November 1, 2001	Thursday	Shaba’an 14, 1422

RIYADH, Oct 31: A section of Jeddah’s King Abdul Aziz Airport was shut down amid anthrax fears, the Okaz newspaper said on Wednesday, as several hoaxes were reported throughout the kingdom.

The technical affairs section of Saudi Airlines at Jeddah’s main airport was evacuated by a civil defence squad called in to handle an envelope containing suspect white powder that was sent from the United States to one of the airline’s employees, the paper said.

The staff, who handled the letter, were admitted to hospital as a precaution and the powder was sent to laboratories to be tested. The section of the airport, which is not open to the public, was later reopened.

Saudi Arabia, which has been hit with several anthrax scares in the past week, has formed a committee to combat bioterrorism, although Health Minister Osama Shobokshi has denied the presence of anthrax in the kingdom.

Police and civil defence teams were called in by hospital authorities in the city of Arda, on the border with Yemen, on Tuesday after an employee found white powder in an incoming letter delivered by the post office, Okaz reported.

That envelope was also sent to health authorities for examination.

Elsewhere, laboratory tests were negative on white powder found in an envelope received on Sunday by an employee with the oil-giant Aramco, Okaz quoted sources as saying.

Health officials also denied that patients stricken with anthrax were receiving treatment in Makkah, Jeddah and Taif.—AFP