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SEBIRAN, Kurdistan Region – Mevan Harki tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend, leading authorities to quarantine his entire town of Sebiran, 9km northwest of Erbil. Although he has recently traveled to Iran, Harki believes he caught the virus after returning home.
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) health officials placed Sebiran under quarantine on Monday to prevent the further spread of coronavirus. At least 15 cases have been detected in the neighborhood as of Wednesday and 200 residents have undergone testing.
Authorities believe Harki caught the virus during a recent visit to Iran, which has become the epicenter of the Middle East outbreak. However, Harki returned from Iran on February 16 – before Iranian authorities confirmed any cases.
“I returned from Iran on February 16,” Harki told Rudaw on Tuesday. “As you all know, there were no cases announced in Iran before that date.”
As he was not showing any symptoms, Harki says he continued to mingle with other residents.
“I had some contact as a resident in the social community. I have been living as a normal person before and during the lockdown. I have been behaving like an ordinary person,” he said.
Although he is not showing any symptoms of the virus, he is still able to infect others. Infected individuals can carry the virus for 14 days or more without experiencing any symptoms. Harki only learned of his diagnosis while seeing his doctor for an unrelated medical complaint.
“Concerning the disease, I’m still very good. I didn’t visit the doctor or the hospital for this disease,” he said.
“I have a problem with my kidneys. I have been visiting the doctor for several years. When I got sick this time I had some pain in my kidneys. I didn’t have other disease symptoms. For that reason, I went to Erbil’s East Hospital.
“A friend of mine is a doctor at there, he told me to have a test for coronavirus because I already told him that I had been to Iran 35 days ago. He told me there were no cases in Iran during that time but it’s better to have a test. I took a test to reassure myself and to keep my family, friends, and colleagues safe.
“The test result was positive, yet even to this day I have no symptoms of the disease. My wife and my son are infected too. They were already sick,” he added.
Harki was in Iran seeking treatment for his son, Benyamin, who has a preexisting medical condition. “Thanks be to God his health is very good and stable,” he said.
Harki is not convinced he was the source of the outbreak in Sebiran because his other relatives have not tested positive.
“My relatives have been in contact every single hour – sleeping, hand eating together, and their tests are negative. I think there is something wrong. I think it might be spread from another person other than me.”
Harki says he underwent medical checks as part of a job application process 17 days after returning from Iran – and tested negative.
“I had no diseases and I was very well. I don’t know where and from whom I got the disease. I’m sure I was not infected in Iran because I have all the test results,” he said.
Sebiran residents are not permitted out of their homes until the quarantine is lifted. Food and daily provisions are being provided by the government and the Barzani Charity Foundation.
The KRG imposed a lockdown and suspended all traffic within Erbil and Sulaimani cities on March 13. On Sunday, the Ministry of the Interior extended the measure until April 1 across all four provinces.
Travel between towns and provinces had already been suspended, with the exception of security vehicles and ambulances. Baghdad has also extended its country-wide curfew until 11pm Saturday. A ban on commercial air travel was also extended until Saturday, according to state media.
At least 319 people across Iraq have contracted the virus as of Wednesday morning. To date, 28 have died, according to a tally from the Iraqi and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) ministries of health.
Ninety-nine cases have been confirmed in the Kurdistan Region and two people have died.
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The Kurdistan Regional Government advises anyone in the Kurdistan Region displaying coronavirus symptoms to call its emergency hotline on 122. This service is available in Kurdish and Arabic 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. More information can be found on the government’s website.
With reporting by Sangar Abdulrahman
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