UAE delivers 6 tons of anti-coronavirus medical equipment to Kurdistan
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – On Thursday, the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) delivered a shipment of medical equipment to the Kurdistan Region to aid in the fight against COVID-19, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Health Saman Barzinji announced in a press conference.
Included in the supplies were personal protective equipment (PPE) such as, “masks, cover shoes, gloves, sanitization tools,” explained Barzinji, adding that, “more than ever, we need that support and aid.”
According to Emirates News Agency (WAM), the aid “will assist approximately 6,000 medical professionals as they work to contain the virus.”
Ahmed Al Dhaheri, UAE Consul-General to the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, said, “The UAE is honored to extend a hand of assistance to Iraqi Kurdistan to aid its fight against COVID-19,”
“Our brotherly relations serve as the foundation of this cooperation, through which we will help frontline medical workers combat this virus in a safe and protected manner,” Dhaheri added.
“Today, we are here, as [the] Health Ministry, to receive and appreciate the government and people of the beloved UAE for providing medical aid,“ said Barzinji, as he mentioned past humanitarian and medical aid from both the UAE government and Emirates Red Crescent that has been sent to the Kurdistan Region.
“They have played a great role in assisting the health infrastructure of Kurdistan Region during times of crisis by providing clinical centers, hospitals, and medicines in the region’s provinces and refugee camps,” said Barzinji.
Department of Foreign Relations (DFR) head Safeen Dizayee thanked the people and government of UAE for their “continued assistance and partnership” with the Kurdistan Region in a tweet on Thursday.
This evening the United Arab Emirates delivered 6 tons of medical supplies to the Kurdistan Region to combat the Coronavirus #COVID-19. Thanks to the UAE government and people for their continued assistance and partnership with the government and people of @Kurdistan Region. pic.twitter.com/uPXGZ8nImF
— Safeen Dizayee (@SafeenDizayee) May 28, 2020
The new medical supplies come at a time then the region is witnessing a new spike in COVID-19 cases. In the past 24 hours, health officials have recorded 34 new COVID-19 cases in Erbil and Sulaimani provinces. According to the latest figures from the KRG's health ministry, there have so far been a total of 566 confirmed cases of the highly-contagious disease in the Kurdistan Region, including 409 recoveries and five fatalities.
Read More: Iraq and Kurdistan both announce record daily COVID-19 infections
On Friday, Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani issued a statement of warning that the public's lackluster attitude toward government health guidelines is the cause of the recent sharp increase of infections.
Read More: Kurdistan PM warns that lax attitude toward COVID-19 measures is causing spike in cases
The coronavirus has infected over 5.8 million people worldwide and killed more than 360,000, according to government-reported data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The actual figures could be dramatically higher due to insufficient testing capabilities or underreporting.
Editing by John J. Catherine