ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Two cases of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) have been recorded in Erbil province in the Kurdistan Region, the Region’s Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday, adding that both patients are from the same family and that one of them is in a perilous health state.
“The infections resulted from slaughtering livestock inside their [patients’] home within the past two weeks, leading to direct exposure to an infected animal and the fluid secretions post-slaughter,” the ministry said in a statement.
The diagnosed individuals are a 71-year-old father and his 29-year-old son.
“Following numerous suspected cases of hemorrhagic fever across the Kurdistan Region that were admitted to hospitals for tracking and testing earlier this year, only these two cases have so far been officially confirmed,” the statement noted.
Health authorities in the Region urge people to "strictly adhere” to its preventative guidelines while emphasizing the necessity of notifying veterinary teams if “any suspicious signs or symptoms appear in livestock.”
CCHF infections have remained significantly lower in the Kurdistan Region compared to Iraq’s central and southern provinces. In 2025, health authorities in the Region documented only seven cases of the deadly virus
Nevertheless, the rest of Iraq has experienced a massive outbreak of hemorrhagic fever.
Last week, the Iraqi health ministry said it had recorded 145 confirmed cases and nine deaths over the past six months. In 2025, federal health authorities registered 37 fatalities and 247 infections from the virus.
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Iraq has experienced repeated outbreaks of the disease since it was first recorded in the country in 1979.
CCHF is a zoonotic viral disease transmitted between animals and humans, primarily through infected ticks. Domestic and wild animals can carry the virus and pass it to humans.
The highly infectious virus can spread through multiple routes, including bites from infected ticks, contact with the blood or tissues of infected animals, exposure to bodily fluids of infected people, and the consumption of raw or undercooked meat from infected livestock.
While some patients experience mild symptoms, CCHF is often fatal. Severe cases can lead to internal bleeding, coma, and multi-organ failure affecting the liver, kidneys, and respiratory system. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the disease’s fatality rate can reach up to 40 percent.
