London, May 09: Britain today advised its citizens not to visit certain areas of China and Taiwan owing to the threat posed by SARS virus. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advised against travel to Inner Mongolia and Tianjin in China, and Taipei in Taiwan, on the basis of advice from the chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson and the World Health Organisation.
Earlier advice from the foreign office has strongly advised tourists not to travel to Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanxi and Guangdong in China. The Chinese authorities have reported a total of 4,698 SARS cases, 224 of which have proved fatal.
The capital Beijing has been hardest hit, with 2,136 cases. Inner Mongolia has seen 266 confirmed cases and Tianjin 132. There were 131 cases in Taiwan with 13 deaths. Bureau Report