An 18-year-old girl from Minufiya, some 65 km north of the capital Cairo, died of the H5N1 strain of bird flu virus, Egyptian Minister of Health and Population Hatem el-Gabali was quoted as saying.

The girl was confirmed to be infected with the deadly bird flu virus on Monday after close contact with sick poultry and had been treated in el-Abbasiya hospital in Cairo since.

Among the 12 human cases of bird flu in the populous north African country, five had recovered and three were still being treated, according to the minister.

Egypt reported the outbreak of bird flu in dead poultry on Feb.17 and found the first human case of bird flu on March 18.

The Egyptian government has since taken tough measures to curb the spread of the fatal disease.

The deadly H5N1 strain has killed over 100 people worldwide since its latest outbreak in southeast Asia in late 2003,according to the World Health Organization.

Most victims were infected after close contact with sick birds.

The virus currently can only jump from birds to humans, but scientists fear that it could mutate into a form capable of passing easily among humans and thus spark a global pandemic.