Cholera outbreak: Iraq confirms 13 cases, scores suspected

A cholera outbreak in Iraq has infected at least 13 people and scores more suspected cases have been sent for analysis, most from the northern Kurdistan region, health officials said Sunday.

“Ten cases of cholera have been recorded in the province” of Sulaimaniyah, said Sabah Hawrami, district health chief in the autonomous Kurdistan region.

Another 56 suspected cases from the same province are being analysed by a central laboratory in the capital Baghdad — the only one able to provide the diagnosis.

The health ministry said one case had been registered in Kirkuk province, neighbouring Sulaimaniyah, while two were recorded in the southern province of Muthanna.

No deaths have yet been registered.

“Around 4,000 cases of diarrhoea and vomiting have been recorded in Sulaimaniyah hospitals” in the past six days, Hawrami told a press conference.

The provincial capital of Sulaimaniyah counts around one million people.

“Cholera is a terrible illness but can be easily treated. We can save lives in a matter of hours,” he added.

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According to the World Health Organization, researchers estimate that annually there are between 1.3 million and four million cases of cholera worldwide, leading to between 21,000 and 143,000 deaths.