31 inmates contract COVID-19 at Iraqi prison

BAGHDAD, Iraq

Iraqi authorities on Sunday confirmed 31 coronavirus infections among inmates at a prison facility in Baghdad.

Kamal Ameen, the director of Juvenile Correction Department, said 31 out of 600 prisoners aged between 18 and 22 tested positive for the virus.

He said the inmates had contracted the disease from prison staffers.

On Thursday, Ali al-Bayati, an official with the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights, warned of a deterioration in health conditions inside prison facilities after recording virus infections among inmates and staffers.

Iraqi authorities have so far confirmed 58,354 cases, including 1,858 deaths.

* Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara