Duhok provincial authorities have declared Wednesday the “day of victory” over coronavirus in the province.

A member of the Duhok's Coronavirus Combat Operations Room told Rudaw that "Wednesday will be marked as the day of victory over COVID-19, during which many activities will be held. This includes the turning off of public and private electricity for five minutes, during which people will be asked to light candles on the rooftop of their houses."

"A number of balloons will be released into the sky and fireworks will be displayed on Mount Zawa," he added.

Duhok has been left relatively unscathed by the coronavirus outbreak, having only recorded 15 COVID-19 cases so far - 12 of which have been declared recovered.

As part of efforts to return life to normal in the province, more than half of the temporary checkpoints established in Duhok province to enforce the coronavirus lockdown were removed today.

With no new COVID-19 cases recorded in the Kurdistan Region for almost a week, other provinces have also announced the easing of measures that shut down all non-essential business and movement.

Of 337 recorded coronavirus cases in the Kurdistan Region, 270 have ended in recovery and four in death.

There remains only 63 active cases, according to data from the KRG health ministry last updated on Sunday evening. Continue Reading

Turkey announced 127 new deaths in the country on Sunday, bringing the country's total official death toll to 2,017. 

There are 86,306 reported infections after 3,977 new cases were recorded in the past 24 hours, according to a tweet by Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.

Turkey has surpassed Iran as the country worst affected by the virus in the Middle East, according to official figures tallyed by Johns Hopkins University.

Thirty-one cities in the country were put under lockdown for a second weekend in a row. Continue Reading

The Iraqi Health Ministry has recorded 26 new cases of the novel coronavirus across the country, none located in the Kurdistan Region.

They include five cases in Baghdad, one in Najaf, 17 in Basra, one in Wasit, one in Babil, as well as one in Dhi Qar.

With the latest numbers, the national total now stands at 1,539 cases, including those in the Kurdistan Region. Of this number, 1,011 have recovered and 82 have died.

Across Iraq, 446 cases remain active, including 63 in the Kurdistan Region.

By Zhelwan Z. Wali

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Halabja province has announced one more COVID-19 recovery on Sunday, bringing the total number of recoveries in the province to 15.

"A 30 year old [woman] has recovered from coronavirus," said Azad Mustafa, the head of Halabja Province’s Health Department, adding that the patient was "discharged from the hospital."

Only 22 coronavirus cases have been identified in the province, and with today's new recovery, only seven active cases remain.

"The remaining cases are still hospitalized. They are in good health," Mustafa added.

Out of the 337 cases of the virus in the Kurdistan Region identified to date, 268 have been declared recovered.

By Zhelwan Z. Wali

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More than half of temporary checkpoints established in Duhok province when the coronavirus lockdown began have been removed, as part of the easing of some movement restrictions. 

"Since the beginning of the curfew, Duhok city has had 36 security checkpoints. Now, only 15 remain," Duhok Province Traffic spokesperson Azad Teha said.

The remaining 15 are either located on roads leading to Duhok, or on main roads within the city, Teha added.

Duhok's Traffic Police Department has also decided to remove checkpoints set up in the Duhok districts of Amedi and Akre, according to Rudaw reporter Nasir Ali. 

The measures are only part of a gradual lifting of measures to restore a sense of normality to residents' lives after over a month of restrictions on non-essential movement - not a declaration that the crisis caused by the outbreak has ended, Teha said.

"Traffic without restrcition will only be allowed from 5 am to 6 pm," he said.  "No one will be allowed to commute after 6 pm. Only those who have been exempted from the curfew can commute [after 6 pm]."

"Our mobile teams will be out to ensure the curfew is not violated." 

Measures to ease lockdown were announced Thursday by the province's Coronavirus Combat Operations Room - the equivalent of a crisis cell - to allow some businesses to reopen, including barbers, electrical goods stores, fast food outlets, phone workshops, printers and publishing houses, and some factories.

Duhok has been left relatively unscathed by the outbreak, having only recorded 15 COVID-19 cases so far - 12 of which have resulted in recoveries.

With no new COVID-19 cases recorded in Duhok or Erbil for almost a week, other provinces have also announced the easing of measures that shut down all non-essential business and movement.

Of 337 recorded coronavirus cases in the Kurdistan Region, 267 have ended in recovery and four in death. 

There remains only 66 active cases, according to data from the KRG health ministry last updated on Sunday evening. 

By Zhelwan Z. Wali Continue Reading

Seven new COVID-19 recoveries have been recorded in Erbil, provincial health department head Dlovan Mohammed Fatih said in a statement on Sunday afternoon.

After testing negative for the virus upon their recovery, the seven infected have been discharged from hospital, the statement read. 

"It was decided to send them back home," it added.

Of a Kurdistan Region-wide total of 337 COVID-19 cases to date, 267 have resulted in recoveries.

In Erbil province, 125 of a total of 169 cases have recovered from the novel coronavirus.

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has delivered seven truckloads of medical supplies worth $426,732 to the Kurdistan Region to support its COVID-19 response.

The consignment includes three ventilators and monitors, personal protective equipment, virus transportation medium, and enough renewable and supplementary items to cater for a 200,000-strong population for a three month period.

The supplies also included a shipment of 30 hospital beds, which were sent to Sulaimani.

“WHO is concerned about the health of the Iraqi people and will continue to provide the technical and logistical support required to protect health staff of both federal and regional ministries, as well as all Iraqi citizens,” said Dr Adham Ismail, WHO Representative in Iraq, in a statement.

Dr Saman H. Barzanji, the Kurdistan Region minister of health, welcomed the delivery. 

“We appreciate WHO’s support to the Ministry of Health. It will assist in equipping our national health staff who are working very hard to contain COVID-19 in the Region,” he said. 

As of Saturday, the Kurdistan Region has documented 337 COVID-19 cases, four deaths, and 244 recoveries.

 

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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.

Catch up on past updates here

 

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