![A health official prepares medical equipments for patients in Baghdad, Iraq on July 18, 2020 [Murtadha Al-Sudani/Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/d2.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/20200718_2_43503264_56795280.jpg?fit=920%2C613&ssl=1)
Italy will send medical aid to Iraq as the country continues to struggle to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, Iraq’s ambassador to Rome announced yesterday.
“Italy – the first European partner to Iraq – will send more medical assistance to Iraq in September to help the country confront the coronavirus outbreak,” Safiya Al-Suhail told official Assabah.
Italy is one of the first countries to be severely and seriously affected by the pandemic, Al-Suhail added, with the Iraqi government providing the Italian government with a “list of the required medical goods and devices”.
So far, a total of 204,341 Iraqis have contracted the virus, 6,428 of whom have died and 146,409 others have recovered, according to Health Ministry data.