2007 Iraq cholera outbreak
A lack of clean drinking water in Iraq in 2007 led to an outbreak of cholera. A total of approximately 7,000 people were infected, with 10 deaths reported.
According to Dr. Ryadh Abdul Ameer, the director of the Basra health ministry, basic water sterilization became impossible in some places due to restrictions on the availability of chlorine for water sterilization.
A shipment of 100,000 tons of chlorine was held up at the Jordanian border because of government restrictions on chlorine based on concerns that the chemical could be used in explosives.
