COVID-19: As third wave begins to recede in Iraq, health ministry warns of a fourth

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi Ministry of Health and Environment has warned of a potential fourth wave of the coronavirus among the general population as the deadly third wave has only just begun to recede.

The ministry said in a statement issued on Friday evening that the country is currently witnessing a decrease in the rates of infections and deaths which it said was a result of the efforts of the health authorities.

However, the statement continued by explaining that "the epidemiological data and scientific indicators do not rule out the emergence of another epidemic wave in the near future due to the failure of the epidemic to recede globally and the continued emergence of new strains."

So far, Iraq has recorded a total of 2,005,991 confirmed cases of the virus, including 22,302 deaths and 1,915,303 recoveries, according to the latest update of the health ministry.

"The only way to avoid the next wave or reduce its effects is to vaccinate the largest possible number of citizens," the statement read, adding that "the next three months will witness the arrival of large batches of the vaccine."

So far, 464 people are still in intensive care out of a total of 68,386 active infections. Iraq has conducted about 15 million coronavirus tests of its citizens since the virus was first detected in Iraq in Feb. 2020.

4.8 million people have received the vaccine out of the total population of 40 million in Iraq, according to the latest official statistics.