BAGHDAD (AP) — Doctors in Iraq are confounded by widespread shirking of precautions against COVID-19 even as cases surge dramatically. The country was under a new, government-imposed curfew on Friday. A month ago, new infections in Iraq were as low as 600 a day but have now surged, reaching nearly 4,000 and approaching the peak from last September. Still, doctors say many defy hospital rules requiring masks, and for weeks, markets, malls and stores have been packed with people. A sociologist says that after years of facing war, violence and instability, COVID-19 “may not stack up as a major problem” in the minds of many Iraqis.
Old habits imperil Iraq as doctors warn of second virus wave
