COVID-19: KRG records 769 new cases, 19 deaths in a single day

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region Health Ministry on Saturday announced it had recorded 769 new coronavirus cases and 19 deaths due to the disease in the last 24 hours.

The ministry mentioned in a statement that health workers had conducted 5,402 tests over the same period across the region, making for a total of 519,958 such tests carried out since the beginning of the outbreak in early March.

Adding the new figures, the total number of COVID-19 cases in the Kurdistan Region reached 55,156, including 34,544 recoveries and 1,968 deaths.

The Kurdistan Region has recently witnessed new surges in coronavirus cases across its provinces, particularly in Duhok and Erbil, provinces that had both enjoyed relatively fewer infections over past months. 

The region’s health minister, Saman Barzinjy, said on Saturday that the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) combatting coronavirus committee will hold a meeting with heads of local governments in the coming days to assess and review the epidemiological situation in the region.

Barzinjy's statement came during a joint press conference with Erbil governor Firsat Sofi.

The minister noted that the KRG conducts up to 6000 daily tests and urged all citizens to wear protective masks and gloves and to follow social distancing guidelines to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Editing by Khrush Najari