Kurdistan Region, Iraq contain COVID-19 very well: Iraqi Health Minister

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi Health Minister Jaafar Sadiq Allawi on Sunday said Iraq, the Kurdistan Region, and Jordan are among the countries that have contained the coronavirus well at a global level.

The Iraqi health minister’s remarks come as the numbers of infections appear to be decreasing in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq after its spikes in early March.

Read More: KRG reports no new coronavirus cases for third time in a week; infections still at 337

“The Kurdistan Region, Iraq, and Jordan are the best countries at a global level,” in terms of containing COVID-19, Health Minister Allawi told Kurdistan 24, comparing the numbers of infections in Iraq to the daily increase in figures of Western countries.

“The Kurdistan Region and Iraq are working according to World Health Organization (WHO) protocols to contain COVID-19”, Allawi explained.

Regarding variations in the number of COVID-19 cases across provinces, Allawi said that “neighboring provinces with Iran have reported more cases than others.” He also mentioned that the closure of border crossings had been “effective” and “successful” in mitigating the virus.

He also described his relations with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Health Minister Saman Barzinji as “excellent.”

“This success has been due to health workers in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq,” Allawi remarked.

Allawi said that summer would decrease the durability of COVID-19, and he predicts that at the end of April and the start of May the virus will “end” across Iraq.

According to the latest figures from the Iraqi Health Ministry, there have been 1,539 confirmed cases, including in the Kurdistan Region, 1,009 recoveries, and 82 deaths since the outbreak of coronavirus in Iraq.

The Iraqi government has taken strict precautionary measures to slow down the spread of the virus, including a nation-wide curfew and the suspension of religious and public gatherings.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany