Congo fever kills eight people in Iraq so far

Eight people have died so far this year in Iraq after an unusually high number of cases of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever was detected; the disease is endemic to Africa, Asia, and the Balkans.

AFP reported that one person died on Friday, with cases of the virus spreading in the north of the country.

The virus has a death rate of up to 40% and is primarily transmitted to humans by way of tick bites or infected livestock, according to the WHO.

Transmission can occur from human to human through contact with the blood, organs, secretions, or bodily fluids of infected people. Moreover, there is no vaccine available for this disease, either for people or animals.

At least 40 cases of the disease were detected in different parts of the country this year, the spokesperson of the Iraqi Health Ministry told The National. However, since the cases are limited, it still hasn't been called an epidemic.

Iraq normally records up to 20 cases a year, which result in one or two deaths. 23 of the cases, five of which resulted in death, were recorded in the southern Iraqi Province of Thi Qar. Half of the infected have recovered.