Amman - Jordan and Iraq on Wednesday decided to step up coordination to tackle a possible outbreak of swine flu, confirmed cases of which have surfaced in several countries around the world.

Jordanian Health Minister Nayef Hayel met with his Iraqi counterpart Saleh al-Hasnawi to discuss what both countries should do in the face of an outbreak.

"The two ministers underlined the importance of exchanging information at the highest level over latest developments relating to the disease," an official statement said.

Wellington - New Zealand has 13 confirmed cases of swine flu and 104 suspected cases, health officials said Thursday as the World Health Organization raised its pandemic alert to the second-highest level.

Health Minister Tony Ryall told a news conference that New Zealand was working under a policy of "contain and mitigate" - trying to contain the virus by monitoring the 10,000 people who arrive at airports from North America each week, and isolating suspected patients and treating them with Tamiflu antiviral medicine.

Washington - US President Barack Obama said late Wednesday that there were no plans to close the country's border with Mexico despite a growing swine flu outbreak, but assured the public that his government was doing all it could to contain the threat.

Obama said closing the border was "akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out," as there were already nearly 100 cases confirmed in the United States, including one death.

New York - New York state officials Wednesday downplayed the fact that New York has the highest total of confirmed cases of swine flu among ten US states, saying the situation was inexplicable - even as health workers were investigating 75 more probable cases and some schools remained closed.

New York Governor David Paterson and his health commissioner, Richard Daines, who noted there was no vaccine for swine flu, said they did not consider the swine flu outbreak any more important than unseasonal flu in springtime.

Geneva - World Health Organization Director General Margaret Chan raised the pandemic alert for swine flu by one level to phase 5 Wednesday night in Geneva.

The declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent. It is characterized by human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region.

"Based on an assessment of all available information and following several expert consultations, I have decided to raise the influenza pandemic alert from phase 4 to phase 5,," Chan announced at WHO headquarters.

Mexico City - Mexico City said Wednesday that it would compensate workers impacted by restrictions imposed to combat the outbreak of swine flu.

Those hospitalized would also be compensated, government officials said.

At least 159 people have died and 2,498 sickened in Mexico's flu outbreak - these include seven swine flu deaths and 49 confirmed infections from the new virus. Of these, 1,311 people remain in hospital, but most have not yet been identified as cases of swine flu.