Moroccan health authorities said in a statement on Thursday that 18 confirmed cases of influenza A/H1N1 cases were documented up to July 2, while 17 of them totally recovered.

The 18th case is still submitted to medical control in Casablanca, and has shown no signs of complication, a statement of the Health Ministry said, adding that the patient might leave hospital in coming couple of days.

The virus was introduced in the north African country through Moroccans coming mainly from Canada and the US. The first case was documented with an 18-year-old student who arrived in Morocco from Montreal in early June.

On Tuesday, a 20-year-old Moroccan woman died in Spain from the deadly virus, becoming Spain's first A/H1N1 fatality. The woman had given birth to a baby boy at the Gregorio Maranio hospital in Madrid just one day before passing away.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the disease has infected more than 70,000 worldwide and killed 311.

In light of its rapid spread worldwide, the World Health Organization (WHO) last month raised the A/H1N1 alert to its highest level, formally declaring that it had developed into a global pandemic.

(Xinhua News Agency July 3, 2009)