Officials warn of possible 4th wave of COVID-19 in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s health officials on Tuesday warned of a possible 4th wave of COVID-19 in the county, adding that treatment possibilities have been minimized recently.

The Afghan-Japan hospital in Afghanistan, which was allocated for Coronavirus patients, has received 35 patients from Ghazni and Daikundi provinces recently, said officials.

“As we see the situation it [Coronavirus cases] increases day by day. We  registered samples, and now it has increased by 20%. Most patients are testing positive for Coronavirus,” said Zalmay Rashteen, head of the hospital.

Doctors at the Afghan-Japan hospital say that they face a serious shortage of money to stock and equip hospitals.

The doctors added they have not received their salaries for three months.

Doctors say that last year, during the 3rd wave of COVID-19, the virus spread and had many casualties.

They emphasize that a  4th wave would be difficult to contain, said Sahar, a doctor at the hospital.

The World Health Organization (WHO) meanwhile said that they had recorded 155,891 cases of COVID-19 in Afghanistan since the start of the pandemic.

The organization added that 7,249 out of 155,891 have died of the virus in Afghanistan.

“There is no medical equipment such as drugs and other (necessities) to fight the 4th wave of COVID-19 in Afghanistan,” said Qayamuddin, a doctor at the hospital.

This comes after the WHO said that 1.6 million doses of the vaccine in Afghanistan will expire if it is not used.