First case of coronavirus confirmed in Iraq’s Najaf: health ministry

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iraq’s health ministry confirmed on Monday that an Iranian student in the Shiite holy city of Najaf has tested positive for the coronavirus.

“Najaf Health Department would like to clarify that the results of laboratory tests conducted today showed an Iranian citizen studying religious studies, who had entered Iraq before the ministerial crisis cell’s decision to ban Iranians from entering, has coronavirus,” the Najaf Health Department said in a statement.  

The student’s case was discovered while medical teams in Najaf were carrying out routine tests on students and visitors. The student was taken to hospital, quarantined, and samples taken for testing, the department added.

Iraq’s Ministry of Health issued a statement on Monday urging anyone who has been in contact with the patient to come forward. 

“All measures according to International Health Regulations to deal with the case were undertaken, and we call on those who had physical contact [with the patient] to cooperate with the measures,” the ministry said.

The coronavirus outbreak in Iran has centered on the holy city of Qom. The death toll as of Monday stands at 12 and there are 47 known infections, Iranian Health Minister Saeed Namaki told parliament. 

ILNA news agency quoted a member of parliament for Qom as saying 50 people have died in the holy city, where nurses are treating the patients without the required equipment.

Ali Rabiei, the government spokesperson, rejected the claims, telling a press conference in Tehran broadcast on national TV that Iran was behaving in a “transparent” way while dealing with the outbreak.

The Kurdistan Region and Iraq have deep cultural, economic, and religious ties with Iran and share a long border.

Erbil and Baghdad have imposed measures to contain the virus, including a ban on Iranians entering the country and the quarantining of Iraqis returning from trips to Iran.

Returning Iraqis must undergo 14-days in quarantine before they are allowed to go home. 

Iraq’s Border Crossings Commission announced on Sunday it has extended a ban on Iranians entering Iraq and on Iraqis visiting Iran for a period of 15 days, state media Iraqiyah reported.

The original ban on Iranian entry was imposed on February 21.

In a meeting with the local crisis cell, Muthana Ali Mahdi al-Tamimi, governor of Iraq’s Diyala province, called for the halt of all trade activity with Iran for a period of three days.

“The meeting decided on the closure of Mandali and al-Mundhiriyah crossings to trade activity for three days starting from tomorrow (Monday) to give space for relevant authorities to undertake all means to confront the coronavirus while making space for returnee Iraqis to enter while undertaking all medical measures and necessary checks,” a statement by the governor read on Sunday.

As for the Kurdistan Region, the KRG’s health minister Saman Barzanji said Monday there are currently no cases of the coronavirus.

“Up to the minute I am speaking, in the Kurdistan Region, there are no suspected cases or contracted cases of coronavirus,” Barzinji told reporters outside the parliament, following a health committee briefing.

However, the spike in cases in Iran has promoted Kurdish authorities to take emergency measures, with all border crossings between Iran and the Kurdistan Region closed on Monday afternoon. 

Samal Abdulrahman, head of Kurdistan Region's Border Crossing Directorate told Rudaw that all border crossings with Iran have been closed to "prevent the spread of coronavirus," with a final decision to be made by the KRG's Council of Ministers tomorrow. 


Last updated at 8:10 pm