COVID-19: Iraq again reports over 2,000 new cases
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – On Monday, the Iraqi Ministry of Health and Environment announced another 2,163 new coronavirus infections, with 2,308 recoveries in the past 24 hours.
The ministry also reported 88 new deaths due to the virus. It also said that 16,498 tests had been carried out over the same period, raising the total to 809,522.
Since July 1, Iraq has regularly been reporting over 2,000 new infections a day.
Read More: COVID-19: Iraq announces new increase in cases, crosses 2000 total deaths
According to official data, about 62,836 patients have recovered from the disease, about 66 percent of the total infection numbers. The report also indicated that there are 27,988 active cases and there have been 3,869 fatalities across the country.
On Sunday, the World Health Organization (WHO) in Iraq announced the end of its awareness raising campaign in both Baghdad’s al-Baladyat and Hay al-Amil neighborhoods, where the campaign reached over 860,000 people.
The residents were given brochures describing both the symptoms of COVID-19 and the measures that should be taken to protect against the disease.
An international consensus is emerging that wearing face masks is a key factor in inhibiting the spread of the virus, and each resident was given a free mask to encourage them to do so.
The Iraqi government’s High National Health and Safety Committee announced on Thursday that it was lifting some of the current coronavirus restrictions across the country. That includes allowing airports to reopen on July 23.
Read More: Iraq to reduce curfew measures, reopen airports on July 23
However, the Iraqi parliament's anti-coronavirus crisis cell said on Saturday that it considered the government’s decision "premature," claiming it would hinder coronavirus containment efforts.
"The decisions of the High Committee for Health and Safety regarding easing procedures, ending the curfew, opening malls, and airports are unscientific and premature," said Jawad al-Musawi, the head of the parliamentary crisis cell. He warned that the progress that has been made so far to curb the spread of the virus "will be lost" due to the relaxation of restrictions.
Musawi complained that the lifting of the restrictions "is evidence of the fact that there are no specialists in virology, and epidemiology in the [government] committee, unlike the countries of the region and the world.”
Neighboring Iran, the original epicenter of the disease in the Middle East, began to ease its restrictive measures against the virus in April. The consequence was a significant rise in infections, and on Friday, the Iranian government was obliged to reimpose some of its earlier restrictions.
Turkey responded on Sunday to the resurgence of the virus in Iran by suspending flights to and from that country, which had resumed on June 16.
Editing by Laurie Mylroie