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The Kurdish administration in Syria on Saturday called on the World Health Organisation to provide support against a possible cholera outbreak in the region.
The Health Authority of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) says it has detected cholera cases spreading in al-Raqqa and the western countryside of Deir ez-Zor.
In recent days three people in North and East Syria have died of cholera, an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingestion of contaminated food or water, according to the AANES. The co-chair of the Kurdish health authority later stated that the current situation is under control and necessary measures have been taken.
Meanwhile, the Syrian Health Ministry also reported 16 cholera cases in the northern city of Aleppo. A nine-year old child has recovered, while 15 people are under quarantine and being treated, it added.
According to Britain-based war watchdog Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) four people have died of cholera due to contaminated water in the countryside around Deir ez-Zor.
Since 6 September, symptoms like vomiting, diarrhoea, headaches, high body temperature, hypotension, and muscle spasms have appeared in hundreds of civilians, SOHR said.
According to the International Red Cross, a decade of war has seriously compromised access to essential services in Syria, including access to clean water.
As of 2021, only 50 percent of water and sanitation systems function properly across Syria, with eight main water systems have severely been affected.
