Kurdistan Regional Government’s COVID-19 lockdown has dramatically decreased demand on fuel by 93 percent, according to data obtained from relevant authorities. 

The Kurdistan Region used to consume 7.3 million liters of petrol per day before the KRG introduced the COVID-19 lockdown in mid-March, according to data obtained by Rudaw from KRG’s oil and gas directorate. 

About 60-65 percent of the fuel is produced locally while the rest is imported from neighboring countries.

Mohammed Hasib, head of Sulaimani’s oil and gas directorate told Rudaw that petrol consumption in Sulaimani and Halabja is currently seven to eight percent of pre-lockdown figures. 

Unlike Erbil and Duhok, “nearly 80 percent of Sulaimani’s petrol is imported from Iran and Turkey,” said Hasib.

Asaad Mullah Karim, head of planning at the KRG’s general directorate of traffic, told Rudaw that “movement of vehicles has dropped by 95 percent.”

Erbil mayor Nabaz Abdulhamid told Rudaw that the consumption of petrol in the province has dropped by more than 90 percent. 

The lockdown, which has been extended to April 23, excluded petrol stations which have reduced the number of staff amid waning business.

Hiwa Mohammed, owner of Akar gas station said that they used to sell 12,000 liters of petrol per day but the lockdown has caused it to drop to a thousand liters per day. 

“Coronavirus has affected the sale of petrol in a way that we cannot even pay for the expenditures. For instance, we used to be open around the clock on three shifts but now we have decreased the shifts and employees.”

The price of a liter of petrol currently stands between 450-950 dinar ($0.30-0.70). 

By Karwan Faidhi Dri 

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Turkish authorities confirmed 4,801 new COVID-19 cases, 125 deaths, and 1,415 recoveries over the past 24 hours, health minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted Thursday evening. 

Turkey has now recorded a total of 74,193 infections, 1,643 deaths, and 7,089 recoveries. Around 1,854 people are in intensive care. 

Turkish media reported late Thursday afternoon that 320 Turkish nationals have died after contracting the coronavirus while abroad. 

By Karwan Faidhi Dri 

 

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One person died from COVID-19 and 19 new cases were confirmed throughout Iraq on Thursday, according to figures from the health ministry.

By province, seven cases were documented in the capital Baghdad, four in Misan, three in Sulaimani, one in Basra, one in Karbala, one in Muthana, one in Nineveh, and one in Wasit. 

One patient died in Baghdad.

Forty-four people have recovered, including 28 in Erbil, six in Basra, four in Baghdad, four in Karbala, one in Kirkuk, and one in Sulaimani.

A total of 1,434 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Iraq since the outbreak began. Of these, 80 have died and 856 have recovered.

By Lawk Ghafuri

 

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The COVID-19 lockdown has been extended across the Kurdistan Region until April 23, according to a statement  released by the KRG interior ministry on Thursday.

The lockdown will be active until midnight on April 23.

All transportation between towns and cities in the Kurdistan Region is  banned, except for security force vehicles and ambulances.

Those who need to travel between cities and provinces in emergency cases can apply for a permit at moi.gov.krd from April 18.

Residents are prohibited from leaving their homes except in emergencies and to purchase daily  necessities,  the statement said.

"People who violate the rules will face justice," it added.

Shops and other essential services will continue to open from  midnight until 6pm, according to the statement.

All commercial flights from and to Kurdistan region remain suspended and border crossings closed.  

By Lawk Ghafuri

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The total number of active coronavirus cases in Erbil province has dropped to 63 after 17 people recorded from the virus on Thursday, according to Erbil health office. 

A total of 335 people have tested positive for the virus throughout the Kurdistan Region, most of whom live in Erbil province.

In the last 24 hours, 1, 302 COVID-19 tests have been carried out in the Kurdistan Region, recording two new cases in Halabja and one in Sulaimani. 

By Karwan Faidhi Dri 

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A joint statement by NGOs largely advocating for minorities in Iraq warns of an “impending humanitarian and security disaster” in the country, particularly for survivors of Islamic State (ISIS) atrocities.

“The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates an ongoing crisis that affects displaced communities across the country, including the survivors of atrocities perpetrated by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria,” read the statement released Thursday.

In areas like Shingal– known as Sinjar in Arabic, five years have passed since its liberation from ISIS, and around 120,000 Yezidis have returned to the area, but much of it still lies in ruins. Basic services have yet to be restored, prompting fears that a coronavirus outbreak could spell disaster for the already vulnerable community. 

The signatories, among them various genocide watchdogs and minority advocacy organizations, urge Iraqi authorities and the UN to undertake measures to protect already at-risk communities, whose health infrastructure has been decimated by ISIS. 

“These already traumatized communities now face restrictions of movement that will exacerbate underlying psychological distress that may lead to increased suicide rates,” adds the statement.

The letter demands the World Health Organization undertake a rapid assessment mission in Sinjar, Tel Afar and the Nineveh Plains, implement a mental health crisis plan, as well as make COVID-19 testing available in all IDP camps.

Moreover, the organizations call for attention to be paid to an economic collapse causing social instability and a security vacuum, with the potential for further ISIS attacks. 

By Yasmine Mosimann

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Iran has recorded another drop in daily recorded COVID-19 deaths, the country's health minister announced on Thursday.

In the 24 hours leading up to the announcement, 92 deaths and 1,606 new cases were recorded, according to health minister Alireza Wahabzadeh. 

To date, there have been 77,995 infections and 4,869 deaths in the country. There have been 52,229 recoveries from the virus, Wahabzadeh added. 

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A monitor in northeast Syria, otherwise known by Kurds as Rojava, has accused the World Health Organisation (WHO) of sending an entire coronavirus medical aid shipment to a hospital controlled by the Syrian regime, depriving areas of northeast Syria controlled by the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (NES) of much needed supplies.

WHO said on April 14 that it had airlifted a “20-ton shipment” containing "medical supplies such as incubators, ventilators, and personal protective equipment" to the northeast Syrian city of Qamishli.

#WHO airlifted a 20-ton medical shipment to #Al_Qamishli as a part of its response. The shipment contains more than 8000 #treatments and other #COVID19 medical supplies such as incubators, ventilators, and other personal protective equipment. pic.twitter.com/kEMJs82IIX

— WHO Syria (@WHOSyria) April 14, 2020

But Rojava Information Center (RIC), a volunteer-run monitor based in the area, reported on Wednesday that the aid went "straight to the regime-controlled National Hospital, and is not expected to be distributed into Autonomous Administration areas."

WHO have previously documented shipments of protection and sterilisation equipment being sent to the state-controlled hospital. Their April 2020 briefing specifies that the organisation "dispatched a shipment of PPE [personal protective equipment] and sterilization items to Qamishli National Hospital (1,440kg)."

Dr Nima Saeed, WHO's representative in Syria, told the RIC a few weeks ago that the Syrian regime were taking the pandemic "seriously," but needed to expand their response.

"I think they [Syrian government] are taking it seriously, with all available resources. But definitely more is needed. Not only from the government, but from all actors," Saeed the monitor in an interview conducted on March 25.

The Kurdish-controlled northeast was deprived of cross-border channels for UN medical assistance after Russia blocked proposals to renew the mandate for humanitarian aid to be routed through the border with Iraq, insisting that provisions instead come through Damascus, where it can be controlled and conditioned by the Syrian government.

Crossing blocks have "added more challenges...for service delivery, it takes time for the health system to cope. So definitely, it has an impact," Saeed told the RIC.

"Now, if we want to send aid to the north-east, we have to get what is called a ‘facilitation letter’ from Damascus" - but this has so far proven "smooth," he said.

From mid-July 2019, WHO "didn't face any problems," he added, with "more than 50% of supplies were going to non-government-controlled areas. Either directly to the hospital, or even to the Kurdish Red Crescent and other partners, NGOs, and of course, 30% or 40% to areas under government control."

But an RIC staff member told Rudaw English on Thursday that WHO is failing to account for the specific difficulties in dispatching aid to areas controlled by the Kurdish-led administration, an RIC staff member told Rudaw English on Thursday.

"...they talk about the north east as it's just another region of Syria, but in practice any aid for this region is just for the slivers of regime held land," RIC researcher Robin Fleming said.

Four people tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases in regime-held areas in Syria to 33, according to a statement by the health ministry. Two have died and five have recovered, reported the state-owned SANA news agency. 

The first case of coronavirus in Syria was confirmed on March 22, but no cases have yet been recorded by the NES. 

By Shahla Omar  Continue Reading

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The Kurdistan Regional Government advises anyone in the Kurdistan Region displaying coronavirus symptoms to call its emergency hotline on 122. This service is available in Kurdish and Arabic 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. More information can be found on the government’s website.

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