COVID-19: Iraq and Kurdistan Region announce 75 deaths and 2,107 new cases in past 24 hours

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – On Monday, the Iraqi Ministry of Health and Environment announced that 67 deaths and 1,808 new coronavirus infections had been recorded in the country over the past 24 hours.

The ministry in a statement noted that 10,075 laboratory tests had been carried out over the last day, increasing the total number of medical tests conducted, since the disease first emerged in Iraq, to 455,316.

According to the ministry’s latest figures, there has been a total of 32,676 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Iraq, including 1,167 deaths, 14,785 recoveries, with 16,724 cases still active, in which individuals are receiving medical care, with 222 of them in intensive care.

The Health Ministry of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) also announced on Monday that there has been eight deaths over the past 24 hours in the Kurdistan Region, along with 299 new cases.

Over the past day, 2,156 tests were conducted, making for a total of 119,602 tests. There has been 1,408 cases of recovery from the virus, while 2,638 cases remain active.

Warning from Iraqi Health Ministry

"The past days have witnessed an unprecedented escalation in the number of infections, which indicates that the pandemic is entering the peak stage of the outbreak,” the statement from Iraq’s Ministry of Health warned, adding that the situation “poses a great danger to citizens and puts pressure on the health system.”

The Health Ministry warned Iraqis that the level of commitment to the government’s health instructions for some citizens is still below the level that corresponds to the seriousness of the situation. Specifically, it stated that current circumstances require much more “social separation and use of protective masks for all citizens to avoid the catastrophic effects that the virus may cause.”

The ministry also criticized the media for circulating propaganda that misleads the public and interferes with government efforts to control the epidemic and mitigate its disastrous effects.

The ministry also noted the enormous toll that the coronavirus is taking on those people who are employed in the health sector, and whose work is necessary to confronting the virus. The implication of the statement from the health ministry is that those people violating its instructions were hurting others, including the very people whom they depend on.

"An increasing number of our medical, health, and administrative staff, who risk their lives to care for the sick, are exposed to the danger of catching the disease, which threatens the cohesion and continuity of front line efforts," the ministry stated. It further explained that the only option for dealing with the disease in the absence of a vaccine is to follow the preventive and protective measures, as prescribed by the Ministry of Health.

Scientists around the world are working feverishly to develop such a vaccine, but none is expected before 2021, at the earliest.

The rapid increase in coronavirus cases in Iraq, as well as the Kurdistan Region, follows the re-opening of the border with Iran, which was the original epicenter of the disease in the Middle East and is now experiencing a second surge.

Read More: COVID-19 spikes again in Iran, with regional implications

Earlier this week, Iran’s Deputy Health Minister, Iraj Harirchi, announced that ten Iranian provinces, including the province of Kurdistan, have seen an unprecedented spike in coronavirus cases. In one province, he said, 120 people became infected after attending a wedding. Harirchi called for law enforcement action.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the coronavirus pandemic is far from over. On Sunday, it reported the largest single-day increase in cases, world-wide, since the virus first emerged last year in China.

Editing by Laurie Mylroie