The COVID-19 pandemic has become very alarming in Iraq, with the country currently reporting close to 4,000 new cases every day and around 500 deaths a week.

Over the past month alone, more than 100,000 cases have been identified in the country. And on 23 September, 5,055 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed, representing the highest daily rate in the country since the beginning of the pandemic. The Iraqi capital Baghdad is the worst-hit city, with almost 30 per cent of the country’s reported cases .