In Pyongyang, the Public Health Ministry says North Korea is free of SARS, the severe acute respiratory syndrome.

A ministry official said travelers returning from China and other SARS-hit countries are being quarantined for ten days and released only after health authorities make sure they have no symptoms of the disease.

North Korea is also resuming flights to and from China suspended due to the outbreak of the illness.

According to the North's National Tourism Administration, Air Koryo will resume service between Pyongyang and the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang.

The state-run tour agency also said that despite the outbreak of the deadly flu-like disease, the North Korean national flag carrier is serving the route between Pyongyang and Russia's Far Eastern city of Vladivostok as normal.

In a related development, China's Southern Airlines is considering resuming service on the Pyongyang-Beijing route next month.