No, there arent any Ebola cases in Iraq

Iraq has many problems. Ebola isnt one of them.

The World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health in Iraq made that clear in a statement late Monday, saying there are no suspected infections from the deadly virus in the country. That came after rumors spread online and through several media outlets on Dec. 31. Most of them cited anonymous medical sources in the city of Mosul, which has been under the control of Islamic State militants since June.

The virus spreading through Iraq would have raised concerns for both the local population and American troops who recently began training the Iraqi military. According to the discredited reports, the virus was said to have been brought to Iraq by militants and other migrants coming to the country from Africa.

Health officials said that simply isnt true. The Ministry of Health and World Health Organization investigated the reports through surveillance networks and contacts with medical sources in Mosul, and found that there were no cases of the virus.

The Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization further confirmed that the laboratory facilities in Mosul do not have the necessary capabilities to diagnose and confirm the Ebola Virus, according to the joint statementa question that was raised by skeptics when the rumors spread last week.

Heres a sampling of tweets on the rumors before the announcement:

Dan Lamothe covers national security for The Washington Post and anchors its military blog, Checkpoint.

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No, there arent any Ebola cases in Iraq

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