'45 out of 105 Iraq Construction Workers Returning in First Group Test Positive for COVID-19'

Government to Deploy Military Aircraft to Iraq on 23rd for Special Transport of 297 People

At the arrival hall of Terminal 1, Incheon International Airport, arriving passengers are receiving transportation-related information.
Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) among South Korean workers returning from construction sites in Iraq has risen to 45.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) on the 22nd, among the 105 site workers who first returned from Iraq, a total of 45 confirmed cases were recorded as of midnight that day.

They arrived in Doha, Qatar by chartered flight and then entered the country through Incheon Airport on the 14th.

At the time of return, 50 individuals showed symptoms, and additional confirmed cases were identified starting from the next day, the 15th.

As of midnight on the 15th, 14 were confirmed positive, followed by 20, 6, and 1 confirmed cases on the 16th, 17th, and 18th respectively.

There were no confirmed cases on the 19th, and on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd, 2, 1, and 1 additional confirmed cases were reported respectively.

Currently, 683 Korean employees from four Korean construction companies?Hyundai Construction, Hyundai Engineering, GS Construction, and SK Construction?as well as subcontractor partners, are working at the Iraq site. Some of them returned first in the initial group.

The joint venture (JV) of these four construction companies is carrying out the construction project of crude oil refining facilities and auxiliary equipment in the Karbala region. After a foreign worker was confirmed positive on the 9th, the construction site was urgently closed, and all employees were placed under self-quarantine in their accommodations.

Considering the serious spread of COVID-19 in Iraq, the government plans to deploy two military aircraft on the 23rd to specially transport 297 workers wishing to return.

Additionally, to prevent in-flight infection, symptomatic and asymptomatic passengers will be separated before boarding, and the aircraft will be operated at less than 60% seating capacity.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.