Feb 21, 2020

BAGHDAD — After Iranian health officials confirmed Feb. 19 that two elderly people had tested positive for coronavirus posthumously, Iraqis, wary of an outbreak, demanded that their leaders close the border with Iran.

​“According to recent laboratory reports, 13 people, including seven in Qom, four in Tehran and two in Gilan are confirmed infected,” Iran Health Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur tweeted Feb. 21. He stated that the outbreak originated in Qom and that two more people had died from the disease. Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA announced that Qom had closed schools and universities to prevent the spread of the virus.

Yet Iranian authorities have not implemented sufficient measures to stop the spread of coronavirus. Parliamentary elections were held Feb. 21, and the Iranian government did not want to affect voter participation. As the situation in Iran worsens, Iraqis are demanding that stronger action be taken to halt the spread of the virus.

The Iraqi Interior Ministry suspended issuing visas to Iranians as a precautionary measure Feb. 19, according to a ministry document, and starting Feb. 20, the border with Iran will be closed for three days. The Iraqi Ministry of Health urged authorities to close all border crossings with Iran until further notice. The Iraqi civil aviation authority also stopped all incoming Iranian flights.

However, Iraqi activists and protesters are not satisfied with these measures. They demand a complete and long-term break with Iran, as they are worried that a coronavirus outbreak would tax Iraq's health care system, which already suffers under sanctions in the time of Saddam and is unprepared to counter an epidemic.