The Pentagon has come under fire for mishandling potentially live plague samples months after the anthrax scandal.

Probe has been launched to investigate the handling of an Anthrax virus shipment at a US airbase in South Korea several months ago.

North Korea challenges the US Congress to inspect a bio-tech institute alleged to produce biological weapons, including anthrax, for the military.

North Korea says the US is trying to use ‘biological warfare schemes’ against Pyongyang.

An anthrax scare is growing in the United States; the Pentagon admits that it mailed more samples of live bacteria to laboratories than previously though. A smaller number of shipments were revealed last week. Staff members at some of the labs have been treated for exposures as a precaution with Pentagon insisting there is no risk to the general public. Biosafety experts have heavily criticized the lapse, because any sample has to be deactivated before being sent out. Deadly Anthrax has been making headlines since spores were found in a letter mailed in the U-S in 2001. The disease has been used for biological weapons programs in the U-S and elsewhere.

The Pentagon says it has accidentally sent live anthrax spores to at least 51 labs in 17 states and three countries.

The US military says it may have inadvertently shipped off live anthrax to research laboratories in Australia.