“This information cannot be substantiated and there is no evidence to show the report exists,” the alert said.

The circulation of this misleading information started on November 11 in Dat Viet newspaper. Since then it has been re-broadcast and published by other news outlets, the alert said.

The inaccurate information was also used to question Health Minister Nguyen Quoc Trieu in the National Assembly about Vietnam’s cooking and safety laws, the media alert said.

At no time has any reporter contacted WHO to request information or confirm the report’s existence.

Source: Thanh Nien