Syrians brace for lockdown after first coronavirus case

Damascus’ famed Hamidiyeh souk, above, was deserted after the government ordered all shops closed on Sunday. (AFP)

• Damascus’ famed Hamidiyeh souk deserted after the government ordered all shops closed on Sunday
• Syria’s state-run newspapers issued their last print edition before shifting entirely to online news

DAMASCUS, Syria: Syrians rushed to stock up on food and fuel Monday amid fears that authorities would resort to even stricter measures after reporting the first coronavirus infection in the country, where the health care system has been decimated by nearly a decade of civil war.
The arrival of the global pandemic in Syria as well as the Gaza Strip has raised concerns it could run rampant in some of the most vulnerable areas in the Middle East. War-torn Libya and Yemen, which have yet to report any cases, are also a source of concern.
Lines formed outside grocery stores, banks and petrol stations across the Syrian capital, Damascus, as people braced for wider closures. The government has already closed restaurants, cafes and other businesses, and has halted public transportation.
The city’s famed Hamidiyeh souk, a network of covered markets running through the Old City, was deserted after the government ordered all shops closed on Sunday.
Authorities said border crossings with Lebanon and Jordan would close at midday. Damascus International Airport was closed to commercial traffic after a final commercial flight arrived from Moscow. Syria’s state-run newspapers issued their last print edition before shifting entirely to online news.
More than 331,000 people have been infected worldwide, and more than 14,400 have died. Nearly 100,000 people have recovered.
The worst outbreak in the Middle East is in Iran, where the government has reported more than 21,600 cases and 1,685 deaths.
Syria has close ties to Iran, which is a key ally of the government in the civil war, and Shiite pilgrims frequently travel between the two countries to visit religious sites. Syria’s Health Ministry reported the first case of coronavirus in areas controlled by the government late Sunday – a 20-year-old woman it said had arrived from another country, without elaborating.
Syria’s health care system has been ravaged by nearly a decade of war that has displaced millions of people and spawned rampant poverty. Hospitals and clinics across the country have been destroyed or damaged.
An open-ended curfew has already gone into effect in parts of northern and eastern Syria, which are controlled by a Kurdish-led civilian administration. It was not immediately clear how it would affect hundreds of US troops stationed in the region.