War-Torn Syria Braces for Lockdown After First CCP Virus Case

A Syrian youth wearing protective gloves and mask poses for a picture after a lecture provided by staff from Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) to raise awareness about the novel coronavirus epidemic at a camp for the displaced in Kafr Lusin village, on the border with Turkey in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, on March 23, 2020. Aaref Watad/AFP via Getty Images

DAMASCUS—Syrians rushed to stock up on food and fuel March 23 amid fears that authorities would resort to even stricter measures after reporting the first CCP virus infection in the country, where the health care system has been decimated by nearly a decade of civil war.

The arrival of the global pandemic in Syria as well as the Gaza Strip has raised concerns it could run rampant in some of the most vulnerable areas in the Middle East. War-torn Libya and Yemen, which have yet to report any cases, are also a source of concern.