Hungary suspects a biological attack behind the outbreak of the disease
Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's office, stated that it is not unlikely that the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (Maul- und Klauenseuche) in Hungary is the result of a biological attack. This is the first outbreak of the disease in the country in over fifty years.
Gulyash pointed out in statements on Thursday that this suspicion is based on verbal information from a foreign laboratory, but the analysis results have not yet been confirmed definitively. He added: "So far, we cannot rule out that the virus is of unnatural origin," explaining that it may relate to a manufactured virus.
The incident caused the closure of borders and mass slaughter of cattle in northwestern Hungary, near the borders with Austria and Slovakia. Hungary, a member of the European Union, announced last month the registration of the first case in a cattle farm in that area.
Foot-and-mouth disease (Maul- und Klauenseuche) does not pose a threat to humans, but it causes fever and the appearance of blisters in the mouths of cloven-hoofed ruminant animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats. These outbreaks often lead to trade restrictions and large-scale culling operations.