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Swine flu hits besieged Aleppo for first time in two years

December 10, 2018 at 10:10 am

A Syrian child receives medical treatment after the Assad regime carried out a poisonous gas attack in Eastern Ghouta, Syria on 7 March 2018 [Dia Al Din Samout/Anadolu Agency]

Two children have died in the past few days in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo as a result of swine flu.

Several cases of the disease have been reported in the city for the first time since 2016.

Doctor Mustafa Mohammed told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed news site that the disease is not very serious during its early stages but could lead to severe pneumonia and subsequently death.

“There are no specific vaccines against the disease in Syria, only the traditional medicines used to treat common flu symptoms,” he added.

READ: Ambulances ‘repeatedly targeted’ in Syria conflict 

Hossam Tarboush, 33, told the news site that he had never heard of the infection, stressing on the need to organise awareness campaigns about it.

“The area is crowded with people, and the lack of awareness can be a problem,” he said.

A medical source in the city said the disease can be contained if the Ministry of Health takes serious action to combat it.