China insisted Thursday it was doing all it can to prevent the spread of bird flu as a health official said a 12-year-old girl who died in a village that suffered an outbreak has tested negative for the virus. «The Chinese government is taking effective measures to prevent the spread of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu,» the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing Premier Wen Jiabao in the first comment by a Chinese leader since the latest outbreaks. China has reported three bird flu cases this month in chickens, ducks and geese in the northern region of Inner Mongolia, in Anhui province in the east and central China's Hunan province. Wen said authorities conducted a «massive culling of domestic poultry» and imposed strict quarantines. Local residents have been vaccinated, he reportedly said while in Moscow for a regional security meeting. «China definitely can bring the bird flu under control through the above measures,» he said. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Hunan health department told Hong Kong television that tests show a girl who died three days after developing a high fever on Oct. 13 didn't have the virus. --mor 1324 Local Time 1024 GMT
