Syria: 3 dead from cholera in Raqqa and Deir Ezzor

Three people have died of cholera in parts of Syria, Kurdish local authorities announced today, appealing for help from the international community to prevent the disease from spreading.

“A large number of cases have been reported in areas of Raqqa and Deir Ezzor provinces,” according to the health ministry of the semi-autonomous Kurdish administration based in Qamishli. “Three people have died”, added the announcement in which the Kurds ask the international organizations and especially the World Health Organization to provide the necessary assistance.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the disease spread to the western part of Deir Ezzor province through contaminated drinking water because authorities stopped distributing chlorine to water stations for three months. Many people are showing symptoms of cholera (mainly vomiting and diarrhea), he added.

After 11 years of war, Syria is facing severe drought and water shortages. Two-thirds of water treatment plants, half of pumping stations and one-third of water towers have been destroyed in the conflict, according to a Unicef ​​report last April. Almost half the population depends on alternative, often unsanitary, water sources.

Cholera, which can even cause death from dehydration, is mainly spread by drinking contaminated water or food. Based on various estimates, 1.3-4 million cases of cholera are recorded each year, and deaths are estimated at 21,000 to 143,000.

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