Monday, September 03, 2007
Sulaimaniya water treatement plant source of cholera outbreak
Health
(Al Jazeera) - Health officials have traced the source of a cholera outbreak in a northern province of Iraq to a water treatment plant, a regional health minister has said. Zairyan Othman, health minister for Iraq's Kurdistan region, said on Thursday that samples from the plant in Sulaimaniya had tested positive for the bacterium that causes the disease.
"This is the main reason for cholera spreading so quickly in Sulaimaniya," he said, adding that the number of cases could rise unless the bacterium at the plant is contained. Othman said at least eight people have died from cholera in Kirkuk and Sulaimaniya, two predominantly Kurdish provinces. Dozens more people are being treated in hospital after contracting the disease.
Cholera is a gastrointestinal disease that is spread by drinking contaminated water. Severe cases can cause fatal dehydration. Othman said the Sulaimaniya plant was to be closed for 24 hours to clean its filters, but also said well-water that had not been properly chlorinated had contributed to the cholera outbreak.
Othman visited Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday with representatives from Iraq's central health ministry and said there were scores of confirmed cases. "There are 47 cholera cases in Kirkuk and 35 in Sulaimaniya," Othman said during a visit to Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday. Dr Burhan Omar, a physician at Azidi hospital, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that several patients had definite cases of cholera.
"This is the main reason for cholera spreading so quickly in Sulaimaniya," he said, adding that the number of cases could rise unless the bacterium at the plant is contained. Othman said at least eight people have died from cholera in Kirkuk and Sulaimaniya, two predominantly Kurdish provinces. Dozens more people are being treated in hospital after contracting the disease.
Cholera is a gastrointestinal disease that is spread by drinking contaminated water. Severe cases can cause fatal dehydration. Othman said the Sulaimaniya plant was to be closed for 24 hours to clean its filters, but also said well-water that had not been properly chlorinated had contributed to the cholera outbreak.
Othman visited Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday with representatives from Iraq's central health ministry and said there were scores of confirmed cases. "There are 47 cholera cases in Kirkuk and 35 in Sulaimaniya," Othman said during a visit to Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday. Dr Burhan Omar, a physician at Azidi hospital, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that several patients had definite cases of cholera.
During his visit to the hospital, Othman said 2,250 people were suffering from diarrhoea in Sulaimaniya and 2,000 in Kirkuk. He said he was ready to provide help to hospitals in Kirkuk that are not part of the three semi-autonomous Kurdish provinces in northern Iraq, as they try to treat cases of the disease. He said that large outbreaks of cholera could affect the capital Baghdad and the central province
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement released on Wednesday that it had established a programme for monitoring cholera in Iraq. "To date, it is estimated that Sulaimaniya governorate experienced close to 5,000 cases since 10 August, with 10 deaths reported and 51 confirmed cases in Kirkuk," the statement said. The statement said that WHO will establish a surveillance system for water quality control, food inspection and case findings and management. It added that the UN Children's Fund will lead a programme of oral re-hydration therapy for those affected.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement released on Wednesday that it had established a programme for monitoring cholera in Iraq. "To date, it is estimated that Sulaimaniya governorate experienced close to 5,000 cases since 10 August, with 10 deaths reported and 51 confirmed cases in Kirkuk," the statement said. The statement said that WHO will establish a surveillance system for water quality control, food inspection and case findings and management. It added that the UN Children's Fund will lead a programme of oral re-hydration therapy for those affected.
Labels: cholera, Kirkuk, Kurdistan, Sulaimaniya, WHO, Zairyan Othman
Monday, August 13, 2007
Kurdish officials dismiss reports of attack on Swedish plane
Security
(Kurdistan Observer) - Aviation officials from Iraq's Kurdish region on Saturday dismissed reports that a Swedish airliner had been targeted by a missile as it took off with 130 passengers on board. According to the Swedish TT news agency, the pilots of a Nordic Airways MD-83 jet saw flashes in the sky on Thursday as they took off from Sulaimani in Southern Kurdistan and feared they may be under attack.
But the chairman of the Sulaimani Airport Authority, Kamaran Ahmed, said a local investigation found no evidence that a missile was fired and blamed the scare on bright lights being used on the ground."We think that the object that had been noticed by the pilot 'suspiciously' was a special type of 'high intensity lighting projector' mounted on vehicles usually used by hunters in the area," he said, in a statement in English. The beam could also have been from a light used by farmers during a rush to harvest in the region, the statement added, while insisting that security forces had searched a 30-kilometre (18-mile) diameter area around the airport.
The Kurdish regional government also said there was no reason to worry."No plane at the Sulaimani International Airport has come under attack. This is untrue and baseless news," its spokesman Khalid Saleh told AFP. Autonomous Kurdish region is proud that it has managed to escape the worst of the violence that has gripped the centre and south of the country since the US-led invasion of March 2003. The mountainous region has opened air links to several European and regional destinations and launched an international advertising drive designed to lure tourists and investors to Sulaimani and its capital Arbil. Nordic flies from Stockholm to Sulaimani once a week.
Labels: Kamaran Ahmed, Khalid Saleh, Nordic Airways, Sulaimaniya, Sweden
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Tunnel to keep Arbil safe from Al Qaeda
Security, Kurdistan
(Gulf News) - The capital of Kurdistan differs completely when compared to what is currently taking place in other regions of Iraq, however strict security measures are being implemented to keep Arbil safe from car bombs and infiltrators. Measures include building a tunnel to segregate the border between Arbil and the turbulent Mosul and Kirkuk provinces, as well as setting up surveillance barricades along this tunnel.
In an interview with Arbil's governor, Nawzad Hadi Mawlood, he said, "The tunnel was built due to some difficulties we are facing related to border control with Kirkuk and Mosul, especially in the absence of natural impediments and barriers like high mountains which can protect the city." Mawlood confirmed that the stability of Kurdistan's territory is under serious threat. He said, "The terrorists want to deliver a message that the whole of Iraq is in a bad situation."
A few days ago, the Al Qaida organisation in Iraq announced that it will form special battalions in Kurdistan. This statement has prompted stringent security measures and inspection procedures around vital installations in Arbil, Dohuk and Sulaimaniyah.
"Intelligence information indicates renewed Al Qaida activity in the Panjwin and Bayara areas in Sulaimaniyah near the Iraqi-Iranian border," Mawlood said. The governor added, "Increased security services in Kurdistan include preventive measures by monitoring the movements of Al Qaida in these two regions and addressing any penetration or infiltration."
In an interview with Arbil's governor, Nawzad Hadi Mawlood, he said, "The tunnel was built due to some difficulties we are facing related to border control with Kirkuk and Mosul, especially in the absence of natural impediments and barriers like high mountains which can protect the city." Mawlood confirmed that the stability of Kurdistan's territory is under serious threat. He said, "The terrorists want to deliver a message that the whole of Iraq is in a bad situation."
A few days ago, the Al Qaida organisation in Iraq announced that it will form special battalions in Kurdistan. This statement has prompted stringent security measures and inspection procedures around vital installations in Arbil, Dohuk and Sulaimaniyah.
"Intelligence information indicates renewed Al Qaida activity in the Panjwin and Bayara areas in Sulaimaniyah near the Iraqi-Iranian border," Mawlood said. The governor added, "Increased security services in Kurdistan include preventive measures by monitoring the movements of Al Qaida in these two regions and addressing any penetration or infiltration."
Labels: Al Qaeda, Bayara, Kurdistan, Nawzad Hadi Mawlood, Panjwin, Sulaimaniya
