BEIRUT (AP) — A 10-day curfew in areas controlled by US-backed fighters in northeast Syria went into effect Tuesday in an attempt to try limit the spread of coronavirus in the region that borders Turkey and Iraq. Northeast Syria witnessed a sharp increase of coronavirus cases in recent weeks overwhelming hospitals and clinics leading to the lockdown. Residents in northeast Syria contacted by telephone said most people were abiding by the lockdown with few people on the streets amid patrols and checkpoints enforcing the curfew. “The speed in which the virus is spreading is huge,” said Jwan Mustafa who head the health department in northeast Syria. Clinics that were set up to deal with coronavirus cases are all full.

Source: Egypt Independent April 13, 2021 11:48 UTC