A 70-year-old man has died in northern Iraq after contracting the novel coronavirus, the official Iraqi News Agency reported on Wednesday, the first death in the Arab world.
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The man was a mosque cleric in the city of Sulaimaniyah city, in Iraq’s semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan.
He was diagnosed after his health deteriorated, the report quoted Sulaimaniyah health directorate as saying.
Tens of thousands of people around the world have contracted the new strain of coronavirus, which began spreading in the industrial hub of Wuhan, China, in December.
At least 31 cases have been reported across Iraq, most of them in Baghdad, Kirkuk and Sulaimaniyah.
The first coronavirus case recorded in Iraq was that of an Iranian student studying in the holy city of Najaf.
Outside China, Iran has seen the highest number of fatalities, with at least 77 dead, after which a cluster of other cases were recorded in Gulf countries.
Cases reported in the Gulf were mostly of people who have returned from Iran, prompting the countries to cancel several events to contain spread of the virus.
The latest event to be postponed is Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival.
Organisers announced on Monday evening they are postponing the first edition of the festival, which was scheduled to be held this month in the coastal city of Jeddah.
Qatar also cancelled a major defence conference as part of “precautionary measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus,” the Ministry of Defence said.
Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (Dimdex) was scheduled to be next week.
The United Arab Emirates said it will close all schools and universities for four weeks starting Sunday.
The coronavirus first came to light in China in December, and has since been spreading around the world.
Some of those infected develop the pneumonia-like disease Covid-19, which seems to be more dangerous for those with pre-existing lung problems.