Palestinians report first case of H1N1 flu

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - A Palestinian boy has contracted the H1N1 flu virus, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday, the first such confirmed case among Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The victim is a four-year-old boy from Bethlehem who recently returned from a family trip to the United States, ministry official Asad Ramlawi told Reuters.

Ramlawi earlier said the victim was a girl but then said his initial information had been incorrect.

"This is the first confirmed (Palestinian) case of the flu," he said. "The boy has been quarantined in his home. It's a mild case and his parents were given all the necessary instructions in order not to contract the flu."

Israel, which abuts the West Bank and Gaza, has reported several cases of H1N1. The strain is commonly known as swine flu and emerged in April in the United States and Mexico, soon spreading internationally.

The World Health Organization has called an emergency meeting of experts on Thursday to discuss the outbreak, in a sign the U.N. agency may be poised to declare a pandemic.

(Reporting by Mohammed Assadi, Writing by Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Editing by Charles Dick)