ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Congo fever has infected over 200 people across Iraq since the start of the year, an official from the country's health ministry told Rudaw on Thursday.
Saif al-Badr, the spokesperson for the Iraqi health ministry, said that 207 cases of the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever have been recorded in 2022 so far, with the infection count increasing despite Iraqi authorities taking measures to combat the virus.
The health official added that 35 people have thus far lost their lives due to the fever.
Iraq is suffering from an outbreak of the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, also known as Congo fever. It is tick-borne which causes severe hemorrhaging. It has been endemic to Iraq since 1979 and reappeared again last year sparking fear among locals, especially in Iraq's southern provinces.
Last month, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi allocated 1 billion Iraqi dinars to combat the fever, with the money used to purchase pesticides and raise awareness about its effects.
People are often infected after coming into contact with the blood of infected animals, often after slaughtering livestock.
WHO has placed the fatality rate of the disease at up to 40 percent, and no vaccine is available for either people or animals.
