A cholera outbreak in Iraq has infected hundreds of people, and records of more suspected cases have been sent for lab testing in the central laboratory in Baghdad, most of which are from the northern Kurdistan region. As announced by the Ministry of Health (MOH) officials in Baghdad, there has been a recent spike in hospitalization following diarrhea cases in Sulaymaniyah, Erbil, Duhok, and southern governorates of Iraq. The KRI Mnistry of Health, published a statement on Thursday 23 June 2022, and issued a directive in regard to dealing with the diarrheal outbreak in the region. The increase in Cholera cases in Sulaymaniyah and other governorates is a reason for concern for the MoH, as it is coming on the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and other epidemic-prone outbreaks. However, the Ministry of Health both in Baghdad and in the Kurdistan region is ready to prepare for and respond to this outbreak and lessen the impact on the affected population. The MoH has also requested that the in-country humanitarian actors support government efforts to deal with this outbreak.

On 19 June 2022, Iraq’s health authorities announced a cholera outbreak after at least 13 cases were confirmed across the country and thousands of hospital admissions for acute diarrhea were reported. Ten of the confirmed cases were in the northern city of Sulaymaniyah. Two more cases are confirmed in the southern province of Al Muthanna and the other in Kirkuk, north of Baghdad. There has also been a spike in hospital admissions because of diarrhea in the nearby cities of Erbil and Duhok but to a smaller degree.