SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The test results of a person who was suspected of being infected with the new coronavirus strain showed that he has not been diagnosed with the new variant, a health official said on Thursday.
Kurdistan Region’s Minister of Health Saman Barzinji said on Wednesday that it was possible that a person who returned to Duhok from Britain had been infected with the new strain and that his test was transferred to Erbil for certainty.
“The test results of the person showed that he is diagnosed with COVID-19, not the new variant,” spokesman of health directorate in Duhok Dr. Ismat told Esta Media Network.
The patient is admitted to a hospital in Duhok and receiving treatment, Dr. Ismat said.
The health minister has said that the Kurdistan Region’s ability to test people for the new COVID-19 variant, which was first identified in the UK, is “limited” and that efforts are ongoing to get necessary medical supplies.
The new strain is believed to spread more easily than the one that spread across the world.
On Wednesday, Iraqi Supreme Committee for National Health and Safety extended its COVID-19 travel ban from six countries to twenty in an effort to prevent spread of the new virus strain.
The countries include Britain, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Spain, Brazil, the U.S., India, Australia, Japan, South Africa and Zambia.
Iran and the Netherlands were removed from the list, according to Iraqi premier’s media office.
In December, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) banned travels from eight countries until January 15, as part of measures to halt spread of the new variant.
The countries included Britain, South Africa, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Iran, Japan and Lebanon.
The ministry also ordered the closure of border crossings of Haji Omeran, Bashmakh and Parvezkhan for tourism.
