Hemorrhagic fever cases continue rising in Iraq

A member of a veterinary team sprays a farm's cattle and enclosures with disinfectant in Iraq's northern city of Kirkuk, on May 7, 2022. (Photo: Shwan Nawzad/AFP)
A member of a veterinary team sprays a farm's cattle and enclosures with disinfectant in Iraq's northern city of Kirkuk, on May 7, 2022. (Photo: Shwan Nawzad/AFP)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Case of viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) continue to increase in Iraq, and a person has died from COVID-19, the Iraqi Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday.

In the ministry’s statement, spokesperson Saif al-Badr said that health centers have recorded 170 cases of hemorrhagic fevers, including 31 deaths, so far this year. Those figures are an enormous increase from figures recorded in recent years.

On Saturday, the health authorities announced 27 deaths out of 162 infections. Four of the eight cases recorded since Saturday resulted in fatalities. The mortality rate for VHFs is as high as 40 percent.

Health authorities are taking measures to try and limit the spread of this contagion, which is transmittable from infected livestock to humans. The majority of infections have been recorded in the southern province of Dhi-Qar.

One month ago, the Ministry of Health announced 12 deaths from the disease, which is transmitted to humans via tick bites or by contact with the blood of infected animals during or after slaughter.

On Tuesday, the health ministry also said it recorded 344 cases of COVID-19 and one death.

Iraq has recorded a total of 2,330,393 COVID-19 infections and 25,224 fatalities since the outbreak of the pandemic, according to the latest statistics of the Ministry of Health.