Authorities imposed a lockdown in Iraq on Thursday amid increased precautionary measures to stem the spread of coronavirus in the country.
Iraq took drastic measures to stem the spread of a new wave of COVID-19, including a 8pm- 5am curfew to be in place Mondays to Thursdays.
A full curfew is to take effect Fridays to Sundays.
In Baghdad streets were virtually deserted on Thursday as police set up checkpoints in the capital to enforce nighttime lockdown.
All malls, cafes, entertainment centres, sports halls, schools, and universities will be closed for at least two weeks.
Security forces, health workers and service sectors such as pharmacies, bakeries and other food stores were exempted from curfew restrictions.
Restrictions on public gatherings and social distancing rules remain in place.
Despite constant appeals from Iraqi authorities for citizens to adhere to security measures, shoppers were seen disregarding social distancing and not wearing face masks at Shorja market in central Baghdad.
Case numbers in Iraq continued to climb, reaching 3,896 a day on Feb. 18, a sharp increase from just under 600 a month ago.
More than 649, 982 people have been infected by the virus in Iraq and over 13,000 have died.
Infections peaked in September with over 5,000 new cases per day.
Iraq also confirmed this week that the new, more infectious strain of the virus that first broke out in the UK had reached the country.
Iraq's Health Ministry said it plans to begin administering vaccines by the end of March.
The government has already allocated funds to secure 1.5 million jabs from Pzifer and signed a contract to secure 2 million more from AstraZeneca.
Little has been announced about how inoculation plans will proceed.
So far, Iraq has not faced shortages in medical supplies or ICU capacity, but that could change if cases soar.
Iraq's centralised health system, largely unchanged since the 1970s, has been worn down by decades of wars, sanctions, and prolonged unrest since the 2003 US invasion, with little investment from successive governments.
Associated Press
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