Erbil’s health department: No Ebola cases here, never have been
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Following social media posts which alleged there were Ebola cases in the Kurdistan Region, Erbil’s health department flatly denied that there are any cases of Ebola in the Region, or Iraq or even in the Middle East.
"There are no Ebola cases. There aren’t any in Iraq, and there have never been in the history of Iraq, nor in the region,” Saman Barzinji, director general Erbil’s general directorate of health, told journalists.
"We reached the results, fortunately with laboratory tests, the blood tests for all the sick were all negative,” Barzinji iterated.
He said that to confirm their results and relieve the worries they had, they coordinated with the federal government's health ministry.
"We assure beloved citizens not to have any fears. Rather, [the situation] is normal, and there are no epidemics."
"When phobia spreads in a community, that itself is an unhealthy thing,” Barzinji said.
He said that they have active plague detection teams, saying they are as crucial as curing potential infectious disease outbreaks.
In 2015, the KRG went on high alert for possible Ebola cases in the region, but none were identified. The government stopped offering visa services to several African countries where Ebola had been identified.
The most recent outbreak of Ebola was from 2014-2016 in West Africa. The disease is transmitted human-to-human “via direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and with surfaces and materials (like bedding or clothing) contaminated with these fluids,” according to a World Health Organization report released in February.
"There are no Ebola cases. There aren’t any in Iraq, and there have never been in the history of Iraq, nor in the region,” Saman Barzinji, director general Erbil’s general directorate of health, told journalists.
People from the Kurdistan Region this week posted online claiming they were ill from the Ebola virus.
"We reached the results, fortunately with laboratory tests, the blood tests for all the sick were all negative,” Barzinji iterated.
He said that to confirm their results and relieve the worries they had, they coordinated with the federal government's health ministry.
"We assure beloved citizens not to have any fears. Rather, [the situation] is normal, and there are no epidemics."
He added that the rumors were merely propaganda spread on social media.
"When phobia spreads in a community, that itself is an unhealthy thing,” Barzinji said.
He said that they have active plague detection teams, saying they are as crucial as curing potential infectious disease outbreaks.
In 2015, the KRG went on high alert for possible Ebola cases in the region, but none were identified. The government stopped offering visa services to several African countries where Ebola had been identified.
The most recent outbreak of Ebola was from 2014-2016 in West Africa. The disease is transmitted human-to-human “via direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and with surfaces and materials (like bedding or clothing) contaminated with these fluids,” according to a World Health Organization report released in February.