Iraq’s Health Ministry confirms four cases of coronavirus in Kirkuk

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s Ministry of Health on Tuesday confirmed four cases of coronavirus in the disputed province of Kirkuk among a family who recently returned from a visit to Iran.

Medical examinations and quarantines were carried out for the family by medical and health staff and the results showed that the family had been “infected with the new coronavirus,” the health ministry announced in a statement.

“All necessary measures have been taken in accordance with the international health standards to deal with the situation,” the ministry said, adding that it continues to raise awareness about the virus in the country.

On Monday, Iraq confirmed the first case of coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19, in the city of Najaf, south of capital Baghdad. The infected is an Iranian student.

The Kurdistan Region and Iraq have already temporarily closed all border crossings with neighboring Iran and halted all commercial flights to the country, where the confirmed cases of coronavirus continue to rise with death tolls reaching up to 12 people.

The coronavirus has spread to over 25 countries, including China – where it originated – the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Russia, Singapore, and India among others. The World Health Organization has already declared the outbreak an international health emergency.

There are around 80,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus all around the world, over 77,000 of which are in mainland China. So far, over 2,600 people have died suffering from the virus with 27,000 more recovering.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany