COVID-19 in regime-held areas: number of cases in quarantine jumps to 260 in seven provinces amid fears for civilians’ lives as regime keeps hiding the real figures

Syrian regime’s Ministry of Health has confirmed the death of a woman infected with coronavirus after she was taken to the hospital. The dead woman was not among the confirmed cases in Syrian regime-controlled areas.

SOHR medical sources in regime-controlled areas have confirmed that more than 260 cases have been quarantined in Damascus, Aleppo, Latakia, Tartus, Homs, Hama and Daraa, 94 of which were tested negative.

 The death toll of coronavirus cases has risen to two, a women and a nurse, amid reports confirm the death of others as a result of the virus.  Meanwhile, Syrian regime keeps deliberately hiding the real cause of deaths by saying the cause of deaths is due to pneumonia.

It is worth mentioning that there are 15 coronavirus cases among Iranian-backed forces in the city of Al-Mayadeen in eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, 11 of Iranian nationality and four of Iraqi nationality.

Therefore, we, at the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, call on civilians in Syrian regime-controlled area to take preventive measures announced by the World Health Organization and to not comply with the Syrian regime’s authorities, which are concealing information regarding the spread of the virus in the country and indifferent to the citizens’ lives.