Iraq lifts full Eid lockdown, imposes nightly curfew
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iraq will impose a nightly curfew, downgrading a planned 10-day full lockdown to limit spread of the coronavirus over the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
The full lockdown has been cancelled and instead a “partial lockdown daily starting at 9 pm to 5 am” will be imposed, the General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers announced in a statement.
Malls, restaurants, and cafes will re-open on Monday, after Eid, the statement added, but event venues, swimming pools, cinemas, and massage centers will remain closed. Shisha is also banned, as is travel between provinces.
Government institutions will also be closed for the holiday from May 17 to May 20, excluding health and security services.
Last week, Iraq announced it intended to impose a 10-day lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus over the Eid holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Iraq has recorded more than one million coronavirus infections and more than 15,000 deaths. The country’s health system is dilapidated and in danger of collapsing with large numbers of coronavirus patients. A second wave of infections began to ease in the last week of April, with numbers of daily new cases decreasing.
In the past 24 hours, Iraq corded 4,512 new cases, 5,043 recoveries, and 28 deaths.
The full lockdown has been cancelled and instead a “partial lockdown daily starting at 9 pm to 5 am” will be imposed, the General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers announced in a statement.
Malls, restaurants, and cafes will re-open on Monday, after Eid, the statement added, but event venues, swimming pools, cinemas, and massage centers will remain closed. Shisha is also banned, as is travel between provinces.
Government institutions will also be closed for the holiday from May 17 to May 20, excluding health and security services.
Last week, Iraq announced it intended to impose a 10-day lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus over the Eid holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Iraq has recorded more than one million coronavirus infections and more than 15,000 deaths. The country’s health system is dilapidated and in danger of collapsing with large numbers of coronavirus patients. A second wave of infections began to ease in the last week of April, with numbers of daily new cases decreasing.
In the past 24 hours, Iraq corded 4,512 new cases, 5,043 recoveries, and 28 deaths.