Iraq reports highest daily virus deaths since February

By Ali Jawad

BAGHDAD (AA) - Iraq's death toll from the novel coronavirus pandemic hit 1,559 on Friday, with 122 additional fatalities, the highest daily toll in the country since the first case was reported in February.

The Health Ministry said 2,054 more cases have been registered, taking the total infections to 41,193, while the number of recoveries reached 18,859.

Last May, the Iraqi government re-imposed a nationwide curfew which is now in effect until a further notice, due to the recent spike in the infection rate.

Fears prevail in Iraq over the possible collapse of the health system in case the numbers continued to rise.

Iraq imposed a curfew for the first time on March 17, before easing its restrictions on April 21, when it permitted the population to roam around during daylight hours, except for nationwide curfews on Fridays and Saturdays.

Since originating in Wuhan, China last December, the pandemic has claimed over 490,600 lives in 188 countries and regions.

More than 9.65 million cases have been reported worldwide, while over 4.87 million patients have recovered, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Mahmoud Barakat in Ankara