nlp-thedeep/humsetbias huggingface dataset:
Official numbers still seem totally disconnected with reality. Data from the Ministry of Health  ( MoH )  indicates that 2,365 people tested positive in government areas since the beginning of the pandemic, including 1,737 who are still positive to this day. Some 95 people have died, while 533 people have recovered
The GoS continues to maintain a widespread easing of preventive measures introduced throughout May. However, in recent weeks, as additional clusters of reported cases have emerged, lockdowns have been imposed on Ras al Ma'ara town and Jdaidit al Fadel town in Rural Damascus
A report released on August 21 by the WHO and OCHA Syria said that only 21,070 tests were performed since the beginning of the crisis in four laboratories in Damascus, Aleppo, Homs and Lattakia, which largely explains the low official numbers.
Since WHO officially declared COVID 19 a global pandemic on 11 March, humanitarian actors have implemented a wide range of activities at the camp aimed at reducing the risks of transmission. This has included adjustment of distribution modalities to reduce overcrowding at gathering points such as combining NFI, food and hygiene distributions and switching to two month rotations. In addition, humanitarian actors have implemented comprehensive risk communication and community engagement activities with awareness campaigns, hygiene outreach and dissemination of information materials across all phases
On August 20, the MoH received a donation from Iran, in presence of Jawad Turk Abadi, Iranian ambassador to Syria, including health equipment and thermometers. The donation was the first from Iran since the beginning of the pandemic and its small size generated widespread criticism on social media.
The Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria  ( AANES )  has started issuing daily records on the number of people who are tested positive. As of today, 425 people tested positive, up from 280 last week. Out of these, 75 recovered and 27 died.
The AANES only strengthened its movement restrictions at the end of last month by closing land crossings with government areas and imposing curfews in most of the areas under its control.
As of 19 July 2020, 65,406 people  ( 17,962 households )  live at Al Hol, comprising 47 per cent Iraqis  ( 30,573 ) , 38 per cent Syrians  ( 24,914 )  and 15 per cent third country nationals  ( TCNs )   ( 9,912 ) . There has been little change in the camp population in recent months, largely due to authorities suspending all visits and departures from the camp as part of COVID 19 precautionary measures implemented in late March.
On July 29, after some positive cases were recorded in the Jazeera region – an administrative region established by the AANES which includes the cities of Hassakeh and Qamishli and their surroundings   the AANES announced a ten day curfew in the region addition to closing cafes, swimming pools, sports areas and other places attracting crowds. Public transport within cities was also banned. Then on August 07 it extended the curfew to most of the northeast areas. On August 16 it ordered all people to wear masks in markets and official buildings and imposed a penalty of SYP 1,000 for anyone breaching this order
Water supply to Al Hol – made even more critical in summer and to protect against COVID 19 – has been increasingly compromised in past months, endangering the health and well being of camp residents and causing increased camp tension. Frequent disruptions to Alouk water station, reduced supply at Euphrates Dam and a volatile informal exchange rate are factors
In the north and northwest, the Syrian Interim Government said that as of August 26, 62 people had tested positive, up from 47 two weeks ago; this is out of 5,251 tests that have been conducted. The first death in that region was also recorded on August 18.
An eighty bed isolation area has been constructed in Phase 7, comprising two rub halls, two large tents and three family size tents. The center has been equipped with beds and other medical supplies and is ready to receive patients as necessary; the camp's health committee are currently finalizing standard operating procedures, including on the activation and operation of the space and the establishment of referral pathways, Outside of the isolation center, three ventilation devices are confirmed to be on site, and the one 24/7 operational field hospital has allocated five beds for moderate COVID 19 cases.
Dedicated case management capacity inside the camp remains extremely limited, including due to a reported decrease in available health services in recent weeks due to issues with the contract renewal of several health partners. Currently, only 12 out of 18 health points and two out of three field hospitals are active, compared to 14 and three respectively six months ago
Of particular concern is the number of health workers who have either tested positive – or been exposed – to the disease, as they are now in isolation, which is putting even greater strain on an already overwhelmed and understaffed health system.
To reconstruct the course of the epidemic to date and forecast its future trajectory, we selected the best fitting model from the default parameter set, which assumed that 1.25% of COVID 19 deaths are reported, and projected it forward for 120 days, assuming that the interventions and population contact patterns remain constant after 2nd September 2020
There are over 65,000 people living in Al Hol and the camp, which has a population density of 37,570 people per km2, is so congested that it is practically impossible for people to practice physical distancing.
Assuming that the current level of interventions remains in place, we predict that the epidemic has passed its peak in transmission
We estimate that 240  ( 95% CI: 170   280 )  new COVID 19 cases requiring hospital level health interventions occurred on 2nd September 2020, with the peak in hospitalisation requirement predicted to have occurred one month earlier during the 1st week of August 2020
However, despite the decrease in admissions, we predict that there have been insufficient hospital beds for the majority of August 2020, with beds becoming available again from the 28th August
There is also extremely poor sanitation across the camp and many people are living with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and asthma, making them particularly vulnerable to the disease.
Agencies face a critical shortage of medicines, PPE, ventilators and ICU beds making it extremely challenging for health professionals to respond to the pandemic.
Humanitarian workers and medics said the real number of cases is considerably higher, including the hundreds of staff employed by NGO partners working for nearly a dozen UN agencies that oversee the country's humanitarian relief operations.
Riza said there had been a ten fold spike in infections in Syria in the two months since he last briefed staff, referring to health ministry figures that say there have been 3,171 cases and 134 deaths since the first case was reported on March 23.
WHO continues to engage closely with the MoH with technical teams meeting daily. Severe acute respiratory infection, one of the case definitions of COVID 19, is covered by the early warning alert and response system  ( EWARS )  in Syria. Currently 1,271 sentinel sites report cases through the EWARS system across all 14 governorates. With the support of WHO, MoH is conducting active surveillance utilizing a network of surveillance officers across 13 governorates, who are in regular contact with and actively visit private and public health facilities to monitor admissions.
There is a need to ensure that precautionary measures are rigorously implemented at community level such as appropriate use of masks, hand washing, physical distancing, avoiding mass gatherings and other measures as recommended by WHO and the COVID 19 taskforce. There is a need to enhance the local procurement and production of fabric masks aligned with the COVID 19 taskforce recommendations and WHO's global guidelines for mask use.
The dashboard as well provides information on available resources, such as treatment dedicated hospitals and CCTC locations, laboratory and testing, bed capacities, and supplies tracking. A daily update on COVID 19 cases is been shared on behalf of NWS COVID 19 Taskforce and access is available to partners and the whole humanitarian community at NWS COVID 19 Dashboard.
On site training for 32 CPHL laboratory technicians has also been completed. In the reporting period, WHO supported refresher training for CPHL laboratory technicians and four new technicians to support expansion of laboratory capacity to include Rural Damascus.
As outlined in previous reports, samples continue to be collected by RRTs  ( 99 at the district level, 13 at the governorate level )  and sent to the CPHL or regional laboratories in Aleppo, Homs and Lattakia with WHO support. As of 14 August, approximately 17,043 samples had been collected from thirteen governorates since mid March, including 56 samples from Al Hasakeh, 46 from Deir ez Zor and one from Ar Raqqa.
These people were identified through contact tracing, despite them having no symptoms. Efforts remain concentrated on contact tracing, interrupting virus transmissions and reducing secondary infections, with 3,704 samples tested as of 6 August.
Following WHO support for on site training of laboratory technicians and delivery of essential supplies, COVID 19 testing is also ongoing at the Tishreen University Hospital in Lattakia, the Zahi Azraq Hospital in Aleppo, and at the public health laboratory in Homs. As of 10 August, the MoH reported that 21,070 tests have been conducted  ( 15,850 in Damascus; 2,109 in Homs; 1,940 in Aleppo; and 1,171 in Lattakia, with a current average of 509 tests performed per day.
Damascus, SANA Health Ministry announced on Monday that 76 new coronavirus cases were registered and 14 infections have recovered while 3 ones have passed away.
In a statement to SANA, the ministry indicated that the infections toll registered in Syria reached till now 2293, of which 519 cases have recovered and 92 ones have passed away.
The first Coronavirus case in the country was registered on March 22nd while the first death was reported on the 29th of the same month.
UNICEF, including in its capacity as the WASH cluster lead, continues to engage with partners to strengthen IPC in healthcare facilities, schools and learning spaces, youth centres and communities, in addition to regular WASH services. To date, UNICEF has supported light rehabilitation of WASH systems in 15 quarantine and isolation facilities across the country, including Al Hol, with plans to rehabilitate WASH facilities at a new isolation centre in Al Assad hospital in Damascus underway. As previously reported, additional light rehabilitation of WASH facilities was also completed in the Dweir quarantine centre.
However, under the new born care programme, only 100 health workers were trained on neonatal care in the first half of 2020 due to COVID 19 and subsequent social distancing/lockdown measures.
WHO has also provided the Ministry of Education with 40 infrared thermometers, 5,000 surgical masks and 200 gowns to medical teams supporting the ninth grade exams, and in advance of twelfth grade exam resits which are expected later this month
UNICEF supported over half a million people in Aleppo, Rural Damascus, Homs, and AlHasakeh governorates through installing and cleaning of WASH facilities, desludging septic tanks, and rehabilitating the sewage systems inside camps, in addition to emergency water trucking. Activities were constrained by the impact of COVID 19 and the devaluation of the Syrian currency, however it is expected that the target will be fully achieved by the end of the year.
Recommendation: Knowledge and practice of hand washing is already high and has stayed high  ( over 75% of respondents ) . For more efficient messaging, rural communities and communities in NE Aleppo could be targeted. Recommendation: Messaging should focus on preventive measures even as people move about  ( e.g. wear a mask when you leave, maintain distance with other people even when out ) , and should target males and younger people. As expected given the easing of curfews and other administrative restrictions, social distancing practices have decreased among all age groups, gender groups, and community groups. Previous predictive work by REACH indicates it is unlikely that these practices will reverse unless there is a spike in COVID 19 cases.
Thousands of university students on Sunday morning started to take the second semester exams for the academic year 2019/2020 as the exams will continue until the tenth of next September amid a commitment to the precautionary measures taken to address the novel Coronavirus pandemic.
The Ministry called on the universities and institutes the need to strictly adhere to the precautionary and preventive measures taken to address the coronavirus, in order to ensure the safety of the students and the educational and administrative staff in general.
In a statement to SANA, Taifour noted that all necessary measures have been taken to make the examination process successful, along with giving directions to adhere to the health instructions and the required public safety guidelines in the framework of measures to address the Coronavirus pandemic.
Dr. Rifai added that medical consultations were held by Obstetrics' doctor at al Zahrawi Hospital , following her closely and daily to provide care and proper treatment that guarantees giving her medicines which don't affect the health of the fetus and presenting Oxygen and psychological support to her to overcome this stage , indicating that the treatment lasted for a month and she was released Yesterday from the hospital in a good health with her fetus.
Recommendation: Few respondents  ( less than 15% in either round of data collection )  think that COVID 19 can be transmitted through breastmilk. Cohorts that could benefit from targeted messaging about breastmilk include rural men, women under the age of 30, and NE Aleppo residents. Recommendation: Messaging campaigns debunking the myths around drinking boiled herbs and exposing oneself to the sun could be focused on for greater efficiency, particularly among women  ( drinking boiled herbs )  and in Aleppo, Deir ez Zor, and Raqqa.
The Ministry stressed the need to fully adhere to the safety and prevention rules, which include the continued sterilization of examination halls and university campuses, avoiding crowding, and preventing student gatherings before the start of the exam and immediately after the exam.
Recommendation: Wearing gloves as a preventive measure was mentioned by 60% of respondents and knowledge did not change between rounds of data collection. This is a message that could be promoted as a safety alternative to strict social distancing measures, which we know are decreasing. Messaging strategies for older men could be explored as they seem to be effective.
Head of the chest diseases' department at the Hospital, Hala Al Rifa told SANA that the lady was admitted in the hospital with cough and respiratory symptoms and dyspnea  ( shortness of breath )  and 40 degrees temperature, however, after medical tests, the woman was admitted at the isolation department and after taking swab samples, the result was positive.
Recommendation: Social media is increasing in popularity among older cohorts, but decreasing in trustworthiness among some younger cohorts. If possible given resource constraints, messaging through television is most widely seen and trusted among most age and gender groups. Interaction with health workers also seems to be increasing trust, and should be continued as much as possible given these people may be better at reaching women.
In the first six months of 2020, UNICEF and partners supported some 50,000 children  ( 48 per cent girls )  with psychosocial support services; due to the COVID 19 outbreak, only remote sessions took place between March and June.
[ November 5 ,2020 Northwest Syria ]  Over 13% of the cases have been recorded among medical workers and 7.5% among other health sector workers, a worrisome indicator of growing strain in the health sector in an area that hosts around four million persons, half of them Internally Displaced Persons  ( IDPs ) .
As schools were closed in March as part of the COVID 19 preventive measures and education activities were also heavily impacted by price volatility and increased cost of supplies and construction materials. 97,000 out of school children  ( 48 per cent girls )  were reached with non formal education through Curriculum B  ( an accelerated learning programme )  and self learning activities  ( 24 per cent of the annual target ) .
to ensure that children continued to access learning and recreational materials during COVID 19, over 46,000 children  ( 50 per cent girls )  benefitted from non formal educational supplies. UNICEF plans to increase support to non formal education activities in the coming months as formal and non formal learning centres are scheduled to re open
In the first half of 2020, humanitarian operations reached an average of 7.2 million people each month, with food assistance being expanded to reach vulnerable people inCOVID 19quarantine centres.
[ October 24, NES, # of cases ]  The number of cases, with the announcement of new cases, reached 3,625, including 109 deaths and 665 recoveries.
Recommendation: Targeting for messaging about the importance of calling a medical professional could be in rural communities and/ or Deir ez Zor. Messaging about behavior in response to COVID 19 symptoms could be a focus for all populations. Knowledge of key COVID 19 symptoms is high across all populations, and only increasing, but responses and predictive modeling indicate that people may not take symptoms seriously enough to engage in strict social distancing. Current messaging suggests that people should immediately call a health provider if they experience COVID 19 symptoms, but only 31% of respondents in round 2 said they would call a medical professional in response to experiencing symptoms  ( not significantly different from round 1 ) .
Over 57,000 young people were benefited from online and offline skills development programmes, including life skills and citizenship education, entrepreneurship and vocational training  ( 29 per cent of the annual target ) . Following participation in the programme, young people were provided with opportunities for engaging with their communities, including COVID 19 response, hygiene promotion, polio vaccine campaign in cooperation with health section, initiating youth platforms for social discussions like debates.
With the global outbreak of COVID 19, the SCHF allocated $20.5 million through a reserve allocation, cost extensions and reprogramming to support the prevention, preparedness and response to COVID 19 in northwest Syria.
Digital engagement and peer to peer mentoring sessions were supported despite COVID related restrictions, more than 300 young people were trained by peers on blogging. Youth blogs were published on the Voice of Youth platform6 on topics relevant to COVID 19, youth positive roles, wellbeing and prevention from stigmatization.
[ November 5 ,2020 Northwest Syria ]  Salem warned, stressing the urgent need for more support “in the food and water sector, intensive care, oxygen generation plants, and general infrastructure.'
[ November 5 ,2020 Northwest Syria ]  Further, in addition to one testing lab in the city of Idlib that contains two polymerase chain reaction  ( PCR )  machines, two other testing labs with PCR machines became operational in October, according to OCHA, in the cities of Jarablus and Afrin in the northern countryside of Aleppo province.
Mr. Rajasingham said that officialCOVID 19figures suggest that community transmission of thecoronavirusis widespread in Syria, with the majority of the 2,440 cases confirmed by the Ministry of Health not traceable to any known source.
UNICEF also supported 190,000 children with DPT3 through routine immunization and special campaigns  ( 33 per cent of the target ) , while over 2.6 million children were reached with polio vaccine  ( 91 per cent of the target ) . However, the limited operating hours of health clinics and reduced capacity due to COVID 19 restrictions resulted in a lower than planned routine immunization reach.
Health authorities have recorded new four infection cases with COVID 19 in the past 24 hours in the Turkish controlled city of Al Bab in north eastern Aleppo.
Recommendation: To help keep persons with disabilities safe from viral contamination, it is important that all people understand messaging around transmission via contact with infected surfaces. The proportion of respondents reporting that COVID 19 can be contracted from an infected object is high, but is less understood among rural communities, younger people, and residents of AlHasakeh, who should be targeted with this message.
Recommendation: Targeted messaging on the airborne nature ofCOVID 19 could focus on Al Hasakeh and younger populations. Women could be targeted with messaging about COVID 19 as particularly dangerous for the elderly. Recommendation: People did not perceive a change in the likelihood of contracting COVID 19 between data collection rounds, but they were less worried than they were when surveyed in round 1. Recommendation: Raqqa and Deir ez Zor could be targeted with messaging about asymptomatic carriers of COVID 19.
We are also concerned that some health facilities have had to temporarily close within the camp, following a surge in COVID 19 cases in northeast Syria, including confirmed cases among health workers in Al Hol. This is due in part to the lack of personal protective equipment  ( PPE ) , as well as the partial suspension and disruption of medical services in parts of the camp.
Damascus, SANA – The Health Ministry said on Friday that 61 new Coronavirus  ( COVID 19 )  cases have been registered in Syria.
This brings the total of cases registered in Syria to 1060, 311 of which having recovered while 48 passed away.
He also said that COVID 19 is impacting some commercial supply chains in Syria – together, to varying degrees, the devastating explosion in the Port of Beirut on 4 August.
The Covid 19 pandemic is spreading further in Syria and appears to be getting out of control as the number of people infected increased by almost a third in the space of a week.
[ October 1,2020 Overall Syria ]  At the national level, the proportion of surveyed households facing challenges to access healthcare facilities were around 15 percent in August and 12 percent in September, mainly in Quneitra,  ( 23 percent ) , Al Haskeh  ( 20 percent )  and As Swedia  ( 20 percent ) .
Syria, whose healthcare system has been devastated by nine years of war, is at particularly acute risk of a severe COVID 19 outbreak, and the economic and social collapse that this would engender.
[ October 1,2020 Overall Syria ]  Furthermore, approximately 46 percent of surveyed households reported not being able to purchase the necessary medicines in September 2020, with the highest recorded among female headed households  ( 52 percent )  compared to 45 percent of male headed households, largely due to lack of financial resources  ( 67 percent )  and shortage of medicines in pharmacies  ( 30 perce
[ October 1,2020 Overall Syria ]  According to September mVAM data, around 61 percent of households with no regular access to markets have inadequate food consumption, representing a 22 percent increase compared to August 2020 and more than double the level recorded since April 2020.
During the reporting period, reports were also received that the four specified centres in Damascus in which Syrian nationals could obtain PCR tests were replaced with two new centers  ( Al Jalaa and Tishreen sports city ) , in addition to one dedicated to UN staff and diplomats. Further reports on social media indicated that the authorities had approved five private laboratories for PCR testing. At the time of writing, this information was still being verified
[ November 2020, Ar Raqqa, Deir ez Zor, and Menbij ]  Reported difficulties in understanding information about COVID 19 Yes 16% No 84%
[ 9th November 2020, Overall Syria ]  Health Ministry announced on Monday that 69 new Coronavirus cases were registered in Syria, and 48 patients have recovered while 4 others have passed away.
One nurse from a large hospital in Damascus toldThe Independentthat the Syrian health ministry number for those infected is only 10 per cent of the true figure. The nurse said that the huge al Mouwasat University Hospital, where he worked, was full up with patients, many of them sleeping on mattresses on the floor. The number of people dying is likely to be much higher than the government admits. Mr Halawani said he lives close to a big cemetery and saw dozens of dead bodies being secretly buried there at night: “Three weeks ago, six small trucks, usually used in hospitals to transfer medicine and medical equipment, arrived in the cemetery at about 10pm.' They were accompanied by about 15 men in full PPE, two of them carrying Kalashnikov automatic rifles.
[ 9th November 2020, Overall Syria ]  The ministry added in a statement to SANA that the total number of Coronavirus infections registered in the country till now has reached at 6284, out of which 2405 ones have recovered while 321 others have passed away.
Lastly, 20 caravans were installed and equipped with pressure cleaning spray pump  ( chlorine )  and highpressure washing machine with water tanks in order to decontaminate all COVID 19 dedicated referrals' cars after transferring suspected cases in NW Syria.
As for AA held northeastern Syria, fifteen people have died from COVID 19 at the time of publishing. On August 19, 34 new cases were announced, bringing the total caseload to 253.
During the Eid Adha holidays, awareness messages were delivered by CHWS on safe practices during this holy occasion to serve in increasing the public knowledge on prevention measures from COVID 19. The sessions accompanied with distribution of 2,423 dignity kits
Relief Experts Association  ( UDER )  “as an active member of the NWS COVID 19' taskforce, has joined other organizations in preparing for this day since March 2020. UDER developed prevention guides, trained over 890 workers and community leaders, recruited additional CHWs, and installed triage tents in health centers to reduce risks to patients and staff. As of July 2020, UDER is dispatching 750 CHWs across northwest Syria to work with aid workers, community members and leaders to ensure that we are all working together to save the lives of 4.2 million people in North West Syria
Meanwhile, 53 cases north western Syria have been recovered so far.
There are over 225 000 IDPs and refugees living in last resort sites, without reliable or sufficient access to essential services such as health, WASH and shelter. This comprises 118 879 people in 10 formal/ informal camps, 41 165 people in over 200 collective centres and 65 264 people in 142 informal settlements. Inadequate services limit the impact of population level prevention measures, such as hand washing, and are likely to contribute to high infection rates if the virus is introduced to these settings.
In addition to the long term economic impacts of COVID 19 on income rates, lower capacity to secure basic food security at household level has been reported as exchange rate fluctuations have impacted food availability in some areas, with traders closing their shops to avoid losing profits. In other areas more people are unable to afford food, such as in Hasskaeh and Raqqa. In Kobani, Jawadieh the countryside of Hassakeh and in Raqqa FSS partners have reported closures of an estimated 90 percent of food shops, making it very difficult to find food at all.
In April, the Fund launched a dedicated allocation of $20.5 million as part of the SCHF strategy in response to the COVID 19 pandemic to complement ongoing efforts embedded in other allocation. The projects funded under this allocation directly contributes to the COVID 19 Preparedness and Response Plan  ( PRP )  for northwest Syria.
The allocation supports the procurement of critical supplies, including PPEs for humanitarian organizations. The SCHF adopted the Flexibility Guidelines to rapidly adapt to the new working environment and to respond efficiently and support partners. With the extended flexibility, the SCHF allocated $1.3 million to the COVID 19 response by reprogramming of ongoing WASH interventions by granting for the first time cost extension
Most basic services are fully available in most sub districts, although 59% of sub districts report that they are in need of soap or water, 80% of sub districts report that a majority of the population are in need of masks, and 89% report that a majority of the population are in need of disinfectants.
Six provinces have now been impacted by the virus, while for weeks it remained limited to Damascus and its countryside. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been a total of 82 cases in Damascus, 55 in the Damascus countryside, five in Homs, two in Suweida, one in Lattakia, and one in Daraa
On June 06, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria extended its 7 pm – 6 am curfew for ten days, until June 15.. Land crossings remain closed except Al Tayha and Tabqa, which can be used by students and for humanitarian purposes.
The number of people who have been quarantined since February has also increased to 10,130, although only 1,700 remain in quarantine: 16 in Hama, 112 in Homs, 46 in Damascus and 1,526 in Damascus countryside
On August 18, health authorities documented the death of an elderly woman infected with the coronavirus in al Dana town in Idlib countryside, the first coronavirus death in north western Syria.
syrian health workers and aid groups say the disease is spreading through the country at an alarming rate, a fact that Syria's authoritarian regime would rather hide.
The problem is that there is no access to official information, the relevant ministries do not share numbers,' Mohamad Katoub, the policy and advocacy manager for the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression, told Syria Direct.
Official figures continue to lag far behind reality–– with 2,109 confirmed COVID 19 cases in Syria as of August 18. Of these, 1,844 were recorded in government controlled areas, including 73 deaths and 431 recoveries, while 1,271 cases remain active. The northwest has conducted 4,605 Coronavirus tests, 51 of which have returned positive. In northeast Syria there are 225 cases so far, representing rapid spread in the region  ( here too it is believed that the true caseload outpaces official figures ) .
COVID 19 cases are on the rise in all areas of Syria, especially in government held governorates. Last week, Syria in Context reported that the government's figures vastly understate the scale of the outbreak and estimated that there are likely at least 85,000 cases in Damascus alone.
Recommendation: Messaging should emphasize the importance of speaking to a medical professional.
[ October 24, NES, # of cases ]  In a statement, the so called Kurdish separatist Kurdish Autonomous Administration announced the registration of 238 new cases of the Coronavirus, which is the highest number of infections in the areas under its control in north and northeastern Syria since the outbreak of the pandemic last March.
According to Oliver Watson, MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis, J IDEA, Imperial College London, for every COVID 19 death reported in Damascus, there are an estimated 50 100 deaths that are not being reported.
We hope to refine these assumptions in the coming weeks to give a more complete understanding of the epidemic in Damascus. Caveats aside, it is hard to argue against a large degree of under reporting of COVID 19 deaths in Damascus. The data provided by the Damascus mortuary office, however, has provided us with an invaluable source of data.
In what is widely seen among Damascenes as an attempt to hide the scale of the outbreak, the Damascus governorate announced that community prayers would open again from the weekend
[ October 24, NES, # of cases ]  The statement also announced that five deaths were recorded for those infected with the virus, which are a man and a woman from Al Hasakah, a man and a woman from Manbij, and a man from Malikiyah.
This week, the government announced that 300 tests per day would be available to those leaving the country, at a cost of $100 each. A new site was opened late last week for the paid tests at Al Jalaa sports stadium, which was quickly overwhelmed.
With testing limited and hospitals in the capital overburdened, doctors have taken to social media to diagnose those afflicted with COVID in Damascus. Through Facebook groups and pages, doctors in Syria and abroad are running small projects designed to provide information, diagnosis and advice, to patients with symptoms ranging from anxiety to serious Covid 19 infections. In the comments, locals advise each other to take the sick to other cities outside of Damascus where beds may be available.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East  ( UNRWA )  is continuing a triage system in their 25 health centres. Samples are collected by RRTs and sent to the CPHL with WHO support. The public health laboratories in Aleppo, Homs and Lattakia have also commenced testing. To date, 44 cases in Aleppo, 30 in Homs and 22 cases in Lattakia and Tartous have been tested. During the reporting period, one case was investigated in NES
The price of oxygen canisters in Damascus has risen by up to ten times due to the large numbers of people treating Coronavirus cases in their homes.
[ 23rd september Northwest Syria ] Agricultural production inputs supply to NWS is less affected as it does not require frequent repeated shipments.
[ December 16, GoS ]  The ministry of health asked the managers of hospitals to treat the suspected cases of coronavirus which usually visits the the isolation center as real coronavirus cases. The ministry stated in a statement that dealing with suspected cases of corona as infected cases will be based on clinical symptoms, radiological investigations and laboratory tests, pointing to the need for swabs in critical cases and epidemiological surveys.
According to September mVAM data, 61 percent of households with limited access to markets have inadequate food consumption, marking more than double the level recorded since April 2020
[ September 2020,Overall Syria ] The share of households reporting staying always at home as a preventive measure against COVID 19 has decreased by five percent compared to August 2020, reaching 89 percent in September
[ September 2020,Overall Syria ] A three fold increase in the proportion of surveyed households reporting poor food consumption has been recorded across Syria since May 2020, reaching 18 percent in September
[ 23 March 2021, GoS ]  The cost of a night in the private hospitals of the capital, Damascus, has increased to amounts close to one million Syrian pounds in the units devoted to caring for coronavirus patients. This coincides with the Ministry of Health's announcement that the number of people infected with the third surge of the virus is on the rise, and the isolation sections are at full capacity.
UNRWA reportedly has many symptomatic staff members. The high fatality rates among medical workers suggests there is a chronic lack of PPE and preventative protocols for those working closely with Coronavirus patients. Local medical reports that they are required to purchase their own PPE and are tempted to reuse it in order to save money.
Northwest:Tuesday saw the first Covid 19 death in the northwest when an 80 year old woman with kidney problems died at a hospital. There were no new positive cases reported in the northwest in the period from August 14 17, though the number of confirmed cases was up to 54 by August 18. Local authorities continue to struggle to trace and test all known contacts of the infected: Of 656 contacts of known cases, just 371 have been tested  ( out of a total of 4,605 tests conducted in the region thus far ) . Two cases in Bab al Salam IDP camp have now recovered, though measures remain in place to prevent further spread in the highly vulnerable area.
Idlib has only 84 available ventilators, despite the WHO's plan for the area highlighting the need for 159. Supplies of all PPE for medical staff, as well as general hospital supplies remain low in the area.
Adopting resolution 2533  ( 2020 ) , the Council approved delivery of aid through the Bab al Hawa crossing until 10 July 2021. The text received 12 votes in favour to none against, with 3 abstentions  ( China, Dominican Republic, Russian Federation )
[ November 3 2020,NorthEast Syria ]  Transmission continues to be reported at health facilities across NES. In recent weeks a significant number of cases have been linked to Derik National Hospital. Transmission among health workers / at health facilities continues to have a very determinantal impact on health service continuity.
In general, prevention is still proving challenging across the northwest. Nearly 50% of people report being unable to afford masks for themselves and local officials admit that they are not available to purchase in the markets anyway.
[ 7 Nov 2020 ]   [ NWS ]  New cases: 249 | Total cases: 8388 | New tests: 665 | Total tests: 33378 | New recoveries: 59 | Total recoveries: 3099 | Total active cases: 5206 | New deaths: 5 | Total deaths: 69
On 25 August, the Head of the Al Hasakeh Directorate of Health announced that more than a thousand cases of diarrhea had been reported in health centers since the beginning of August due to water purchased by individuals in local markets that came from contaminated wells. Continual disruptions to the Alouk station are of additional concern given the rapid increase in COVID 19 cases across northeast Syria, for which communities require reliable access to safe water to prevent further spread of the pandemic.
[ 26th september,overall Syria ] Over 4,100 new Covid 19 cases was recorded in regime held areas in the past few days, while 275 other cases died of the virus in the same period.
[ 1 July 2021, GoS ]  Health Ministry announced that 36 new coronavirus cases were detected in Syria, 6 patients have recovered while 3 infected persons have passed away.
As of 3 November, 496 of the 4,978 confirmed cases of COVID19  ( 10% of all cases )  were recorded amongst health workers  ( there is a high likelihood of significant unreported transmission among health workers ) .
According to updates provided by 12 NES NGOs covering 92 health facilities as of 3 November, 3 health facilities were closed  ( 1 of which was partially closed ) :1 in Kobane, 1 in Deirk and 1 in Menbij.
[ November 3 2020,NorthEast Syria ]  A further 23 health facilities have been closed or partially closed at some point during October due to contamination of facilities and cases amongst staff
[ November 3 2020,NorthEast Syria ]  As of 3 November, there have been a total of 20 confirmed COVID 19 cases in camps.
[ 26th september,overall Syria ] According to SOHR latest statistics, based on reports obtained from reliable medical sources in regime controlled areas, the total number of confirmed Covid 19 cases has reached nearly 30,050, of whom 3,900 recovered, and 1,605 died.
[ November 3 2020 Syria ]  Areesha: 4 cases: 2 currently in the isolation area  ( 1 male and 1 female )  and 2 recoveries. At present no suspect cases have been recorded
[ 26th september,overall Syria ] Meanwhile, most of the infection cases and deaths are still documented in the provinces of Aleppo, Damascus and Rif Dimashq, amid disastrous medical situation
As of 30 October a 10 day partial curfew came into effect across all of NES, lasting until 8 November
Over the past week, the Syrian Ministry of Health registered more than 500 cases, raising the total number of confirmed cases to 2,365 by August 25. Thus far, 95 patients with confirmed infections died and 533 recovered, leaving 1,737 active cases
Northeast:There are 225 COVID 19 cases in northeast Syria, 14 of them have died and 28 recovered, leaving 187 active cases. At least 15 cases are health workers. 14 cases were announced on Tuesday, of which eight were in Qamishli, three in Derik  ( Malkieh ) , two in Amuda, and one in Kobane.
In the absence of an effective public or international response, doctors in Damascus and across Syria continue to treat patients using social media, telemedicine and home care due to the lack of available hospital beds and fear within the population.
[ September 2020,Overall Syria ] The COVID 19 outbreak is still disrupting access to markets and healthcare services. In September, around 24 percent of Syrian households reported not to have access to markets, with peaks recorded in Al Hasakeh  ( 35 percent )  and Ar Raqqa  ( 32 percent )
On 3 November, following a surge in case in Malakiyeh  ( Derik )  in recent weeks, the Executive Council of Jazeera Canton announced a full 14 day lockdown in ‘Derik city and its countryside'  ( understood as the whole of Malakiyeh District )  which will come into effect on 6 November  ( until 19 November )  .
[ November 3 2020,NorthEast Syria ]  Under this lockdown, schools  ( excluding shops selling food between 6am and 1pm ) , places of worship, shops, restaurants, playgrounds and private clinics will be closed, while movements in and out of Derik city will be prohibited  ( excluding emergency cases and food shipments ) .Humanitarian actors are exempted from these restrictions.
[ 10 Nov 2020 ]   [ NWS ]  New cases: 345 | Total cases: 9685 | New tests: 1036 | Total tests: 36865 | New recoveries: 111 | Total recoveries: 3461 | Total active cases: 6112 | New deaths: 0 | Total deaths: 77
[ 11 Nov 2020 ]   [ NWS ]  New cases: 455 | Total cases: 10140 | New tests: 1268 | Total tests: 38133 | New recoveries: 62 | Total recoveries: 3523 | Total active cases: 6515 | New deaths: 0 | Total deaths: 82
[ 14/02/2021, Overall Syria ]  According to SOHR latest statistics, based on reports obtained from reliable medical sources on the ground in regime controlled areas, the total number of confirmed COVID 19 cases has reached 305,800, of which over 108,000 were recovered, and 14,513 died. It is worth noting that regime Ministry of Health' official statistics announced 14,820 infections, of whom 975 people died and 8,600 were recovered. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has documented the death of 172 doctors in the Syrian regime held areas due to the coronavirus in 2020, and were documented by name.
Over the last month  ( between 3 October and 3 November ) , the number of confirmed case in NES has increased by 171%, up from 1,839 confirmed cases as of 3 October  ( 1,291 active cases, 479 recoveries and 69 deaths )  to 4,978 confirmed cases as of 3 November  ( 4,087 active cases, 758 recoveries and 133 deaths ) .
[ 1st October ]  Aleppo: Over the reporting period, there has been a noticeable increase in confirmed cases in both Kobane and Menbij. In Menbij, the first cases of COVID 19 were reported as of mid September with 36 cases currently confirmed.
In NES  ( as of 6 October )  1,998 reported cases of COVID 19 have been confirmed. Of these, there were 1,424 active cases, 503 recovered cases and 71 deaths.
. The number of samples tested per day has also increased over the last month. Excluding days where the laboratory was closed  ( and 0 tests were conducted ) , the 7 day average for the number of tests conducted was 343 tests as of 3 November, up from 140 tests as of 3 October.
However, the positivity rate  ( i.e the proportion of samples tested which returns positive )  has also increased from 35% on 3 October  ( with a 7 day average of 40% )  to 42% as of 3 November  ( with a 7 day average of 44% )
[ 7th oct 2020 Overall Syria ] While the majority of newly confirmed cases has been concentrated in Al Hasakeh, with 423 newly confirmed cases in the past two weeks  ( a 53 per cent increase )   ( as of 30 September ) , the upward trend of increased transmission in other areas has also continued. .
[ 1st October, overall Syria ]  Core messaging has been delivered across all 135 locations through a combination of modalities including posters, face to face engagement  ( while maintaining social distancing protocols ) , WhatsApp  ( including voice messages )  and text messages as well as information provided at distribution points
[ 1st October, overall Syria ]  In addition, tailored messaging has been delivered in 29 locations, including 9 camps, directed to the most at risk groups namely the elderly, people in camps and collective shelters  ( including parents and caregivers ) , frontline workers, and persons with disabilities. Since June, 203,427 individuals have been directly reached with core and tailored messages through household level visits, and at static facilities  ( e.g. health centres ) .
As of 3 October, Syria and neighboring countries continue to reinforce precautionary measures at border crossings to limit the virus's spread. Most land borders into Syria remain closed, with some limited exceptions from Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon, including commercial cargo, relief shipments, and the movement of personnel from humanitarian and international organizations.
Official figures continue to lag far behind reality–– with 2,754 confirmed COVID 19 cases in Syria as of August 25. Of these, 2,365 were recorded in government controlled areas, including 95 deaths and 533 recoveries, while 1,737 cases remain active
COVID 19 cases are on the rise in all areas of Syria, especially in government held governorates.
[ 1st October, Syria ]  Over the last month, the number of confirmed cases in both has continued to increase, with a total of 447 confirmed cases in Qamishli and 392 confirmed cases in Hassakeh as of 30 September. The rate of increase has been higher in Hassakeh, with particular concerns around the level of health worker transmission in Hassakeh city.
[ 1st October, Overall Syria ]  This underlines the need for a combination of mass mobilization through conventional and social media as well as outreach through community networks to effectively share knowledge, shape attitudes and influence behaviour in response to COVID 19.
[  December 15, Damascus ]  Damascus University has canceled all graduation ceremonies that were held in the faculties of the university, as part of the measures to address the Corona virus. The university's Facebook page said that “as part of the precautionary measures for the Corona, and in order to avoid crowding and gatherings, the administrative office of the National Union of Syrian Students at the University of Damascus has directed the cancellation of all graduation ceremonies that were to be held in the faculties of the university.'
[ 11th oct 2020,overall syria ]  Meanwhile, 48 cases were recovered in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of recovered cases to 464.
[ 17th September , Overall Syria ] In this regard, life saving food assistance to 3.5 million people has continued with adjusted distribution modalities, as has agricultural and livelihoods programs
[ 11th oct 2020 ]  On the other hand, health authorities recorded today 69 new infection cases with COVID 19 in north western Syria region, which is under the control of HTS and Turkish backed factions in Aleppo and Idlib provinces
[ 17th September , Overall Syria ] UNDP and partners have further focused on support for micro, small and medium enterprises for workers temporarily out of employment with social safety net activities, dedicated assistance to people with disabilities, in addition to distribution of agricultural inputs and livestock to sustain food security in rural areas
[ 11th oct 2020,overall syria  ]  Syrian Observatory activists have documented the death of 15 people in north western Syria in areas under the control of the “Salvation government' in Idlib and surrounding areas, and areas controlled by the “Interim Government' in north Aleppo countryside.
[ 11th oct 2020 ]  The Health Ministry of the “Syrian Interim Government' has announced Al Bab city an infected zone, after coronavirus considerable outbreaks, since over 460 infection cases with COVID 19 has been detected in the city so far.
[ 17th September , Overall Syria ] As reported previously, even as restrictions have eased, Heath, Nutrition and Protection sector partners in particular have reported challenges in implementing alternative modalities