Kuwait halts food imports from Iraq after fears over cholera

Kuwait has halted all food imports and water from Iraq after reports of cholera cases being on the rise in Basra and other parts of the country.

The Iraqi ambassador to Kuwait has filed a complaint at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, local media reported, over the move to cut trade ties, saying that the fear was unwarranted.

Kuwait has made the decision after reports of cholera breaking out around the country.

The World Health Organisation has yet to issue the status of the waterborne disease in the country, but cholera has been a concern in Iraq since a major outbreak in 2007 infected 7,000 people and killed 10.

Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai, quoting an embassy source, said that the move would harm trade between the two countries.

The embassy asked that Kuwait set a timeline for the temporary ban on food imports and that they look at the situation in Iraq.

The World Health Organisation said that cholera can be carried by food and livestock, and that measures should be taken to avoid international exposure.

The organisation said that cholera outbreaks in Iraq typically occurred every three to five years, beginning in September and continuing through to December.

Cases naturally decline, but little has been done to avoid the risk.

Dates are Iraq’s main fruit and vegetable exports to Kuwait. In 2016, it accounted for up to 10 per cent of trade with their southern neighbour.

Kuwait has a long history of reliance on Iraq’s freshwater sources to provide potable water. Kuwaiti merchants have imported river water from Iraq’s Shatt Al Arab since 1920.

The Kuwaiti Health Ministry advised citizens against travelling to Iraq, based on health conditions in certain parts of the country.

The decision is not up for review.

This summer, Iraq suffered a water shortage in the south of the country, sparking unrest in cities such as Basra for months.

Reports also claimed that Iraqis were falling sick from using water from the Shatt Al Arab because of the high salinity coming in from the Arabian Gulf.

This was not the first time that Iraq’s southern neighbour, which had been importing food from Iraq for generations, stopped trade over fears of communicable diseases.

Kuwait recently provided aid to Iraq by sending four seawater desalination after the unrest over water scarcity.

In August, it also sent 17 mobile power generators capable of providing 30,000 kilowatts of power.