COVID-19: Kurdistan Region reports over 670 new cases, 15 deaths in past 24 hours

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region registered over 670 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours as well as 15 fatalities, according to the region’s health ministry’s daily report on the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement, the ministry said health workers had conducted 6,012 tests across the region over the past 24 hours, with 687 returning positive. Of the total, the highest figures were in Duhok province, which recorded 271. Erbil had 199 cases, Sulaimani had 78 cases, while Halabja had 43.

The statement noted that 15 patients had died during the same period: seven in Erbil, five in Sulaimani, and two in Duhok.

The ministry has reported 33,685 cases across the Kurdistan Region since the pandemic began. Of these, 1,246 people have died, 11,195 remain under treatment, and 21,244 have recovered.

It is important to note that a patient classified as a “recovery” means they are no longer being actively treated by health professionals, not that they have fully recovered. Increasingly, medical experts are recognizing that some COVID-19 symptoms, such as fatigue, continue for long, after an individual’s formal recovery.

Lately, the Kurdistan Region has witnessed new surges in coronavirus cases across its provinces, particularly Duhok and Erbil, which enjoyed fewer daily infections compared to Sulaimani province.

Nowadays, Duhok, once the least impacted province, records high daily infections. The province’s governor recently said that “around 90 percent” of the responsibility lies with the residents to protect themselves from infections, via reducing physical interactions.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany