A US-based aid group has warned that the coronavirus could infect up to a billion people globally if countries at risk don’t get immediate help.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) said in its latest report that financial and humanitarian aid is urgently needed to help slow the spread of the virus in “fragile countries”, where it is still in its early stages.
The aid group said conflict zones such as Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan and Iraq will be the hardest hit because years of violence weakened their health systems, while refugees and displaced people are highly susceptible to illness due to “impacts of war, disease and famine”.
The report, based on data from the WHO and Imperial College London, said the IRC estimates cases in the range of 500mn to 1bn, leading to deaths in the range of 1.7mn to 3.2mn, in 34 conflict-hit nations.