Iraq's daily COVID-19 cases hit new record, total infections exceed 70,000
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E-mail Xinhua, July 11, 2020
BAGHDAD, July 10 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Health Ministry on Friday recorded 2,848 new COVID-19 cases, the highest daily increase since the outbreak of the disease, bringing the total nationwide infections to 72,460.
The ministry in a statement confirmed 78 more deaths, raising the country's death toll from the infectious virus to 2,960.
It also said that 1,878 people recovered during the day, bringing the total recoveries from the disease to 41,380.
The new cases were recorded after 12,054 testing kits were used across the country during the past 24 hours, and a total of 661,090 tests have been carried out since the outbreak of the disease, according to the ministry's statement.
Also in the day, a statement by the Iraqi Higher Commission of Human Rights (IHCHR) warned of the spread of coronavirus pandemic due to deterioration of health conditions inside prison facilities.
IHCHR's teams in Baghdad and other provinces have recorded a total of 111 infections of COVID-19 among inmates and personnel in Iraqi prisons and detention centers, including one death, the statement said.
"The Commission calls on the Iraqi government to accelerate the finding of thorough solutions to limit the spread of the pandemic within detention centers and prisons, who are totally numbered more than 64,000 convicted and under arrest individuals," the statement added.
Meanwhile, the first Iraqi parliament lawmaker was announced dead with coronavirus, when a medical source from Diyala province said that Ghaida Kambash, head of the parliamentary committee for higher education, died after two weeks of being infected with the disease.
On June 22, the Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi said in an interview with local Dijla TV channel that 20 lawmakers and 28 of the parliament employees have been infected with the virus, including a director-general.
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, Iraq has been taking measures to contain the pandemic.
China has been helping Iraq fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
From March 7 to April 26, a Chinese team of seven medical experts spent 50 days in Iraq to help contain the disease, during which they helped build a PCR lab and an advanced CT scanner in Baghdad.
Since March 7, China has also sent three batches of medical aid to Iraq. Enditem
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