On May 16, local time, many parts of Iraq ushered in a sandstorm. Many airports were forced to temporarily shut down, and government agencies and schools were closed for a day.
This is the eighth widespread sandstorm that Iraq has encountered since mid-April.
According to reports, the dust storm affected the area from Sulaymaniyah, the second largest city in the Kurdish Autonomous Region, to the north, and Najaf, the holy city of Shiite religion, to the south, including the capital Baghdad and most of the central provinces.
Seven of Iraq's 18 provinces declared a one-day holiday for government departments other than medical institutions, and closed schools in schools and universities.
Baghdad International Airport, Sulaymaniyah and Najaf airports all closed airspace and cancelled all inbound and outbound flights due to poor visibility.
It was not immediately clear how many people were hospitalized due to the dust storm.
(produced by Le Xiaomin)
Responsible editor: [Luo Pan]