Kurdish-led northeast under lockdown as Syria announces first coronavirus case
The Kurdish-led autonomous administration declares a two-week curfew in an effort to keep the coronavirus out of northeast Syria; Turkey cuts off water supply to Hasakah.
![HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS/SYRIA A member of the Asayish stands near a man in a wheelchair along an empty street, as restrictions are imposed as measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Qamishli, Syria March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC2VPF9ALD0J](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2020/04/RTS370IA.jpg/RTS370IA.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=K4MDu2YZ)
The Kurdish-led autonomous administration in northeast Syria announced a lockdown in the broad swath of territory under its control today, just hours after the Syrian government confirmed its first case of the coronavirus.
The autonomous administration has declared a two-week curfew. It said in a statement this could be extended “in case of necessity and the public interest.” The administration said no cases of COVID-19 had been detected in the northeast so far. The area lying east of the Euphrates bordering Turkey to the north and Iraq to the east is home to between 4 million to 5 million people, among them hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians and Islamic State prisoners.