Cholera hits Iraq

At least 13 people have been infected with Cholera in Iraq as the COVID-19 outbreak slows down. Authorities claim that northern Kurdistan is the epicenter of the problem.

Kurdistan's district health chief, Sabah Hawrami, stated that Sulaimaniyah had 10 cholera cases, which were confirmed.

There are 56 likely cases being investigated in Baghdad's central laboratory from the same province. This come from the Kirkuk province, which is located close to the city of Sulaimaniyah. There have been no fatalities as of yet.

Hospitals in Sulaimaniyah have witnessed 4,000 cases of diarrhea and vomiting in the last six days, Hawrami has reported. One million people live in Sulaimaniyah. "However, cholera can be treated. The difference between life and death can be measured in hours " he added to that.

Seif al-Badr, a spokesman for the Health Ministry, said the last large Cholera epidemic occurred in 2015.

There were hundreds of illnesses in Baghdad and Babil, which are located to the south. The last Cholera outbreak in Sulaimaniyah occurred in 2012. One of the most deadly yet easily curable acute diarrheal diseases is cholera.

A bacterium that causes it is spread by poor sanitation. Food or water that has been contaminated can lead to an infection.

Between 1.3 million and 4 million cases of cholera and 21,000 to 143,000 deaths are reported each year by the World Health Organization (WHO).