Several Iranian Parliament Members: Entire Country Should Be Quarantined

Several representatives of Iran’s parliament have proposed that the entire country be quarantined. Officials have asked people to refrain from Nowruz travel this year and emphasize the importance of necessary coordination among government bodies to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

According to Shahab-al-Din Bimaqdar, representative of Tabriz in Iran’s parliament, he along with some other parliament members in a meeting with the health minister proposed that in order to effectively counter the coronavirus, the entire country should be quarantined.

The Tabriz representative and member of the Hope faction of parliament said: “I and some other representatives had suggested that the country undergo complete quarantine and travel be reduced. This was a good suggestion, at least for provinces that have not yet been affected, we should completely limit travel and prevent this disease from spreading.”

Bimaqdar in an interview with Kaar news agency (ILNA) said that in the aforementioned session held on Thursday, 22nd of Esfand, with the presence of the parliament speaker and health minister, “about seventy or eighty representatives and officials related to the treatment sector and corona control” were present.

He told media outlets: “The summary of what the representatives said was that the situation is very critical and we must be serious about it.” He expressed surprise at the president’s description of the country’s situation as “normal.”

This reformist representative emphasized: “My specific proposal was that we give each Iranian 400,000 tomans and shut down the country completely until the 5th of Esfand, except for pharmacies and places that produce basic necessities and food, then conduct quarantine, and this amount will not be insignificant but will amount to approximately 32 trillion tomans.”

Preventing Nowruz Travel

As Iran approaches Nowruz, the largest national celebration, some Iranian cities have warned citizens against traveling, saying this is the best opportunity for the coronavirus to affect more people.

MohammadReza Kalai, mayor of Mashhad, asked people not to travel to Mashhad this year, as their travel could “bring a human catastrophe.”

Arslan Zarei, governor of Gilan, also said in an interview with Iranian state television: “Everywhere in Gilan except people’s homes is contaminated.”

He further emphasized: “We repeatedly ask people not to travel to Gilan.”

Impact of American Sanctions on Combating Corona

Masoud Pezeshkian, deputy speaker of Iran’s parliament, said that to counter the coronavirus, there is no need to import “medical equipment.”

While criticizing the performance of the Supreme Health Council, he emphasizes that the rapid spread of the disease in Iran has nothing to do with the lack of medical equipment such as masks and ventilators, but rather is because government bodies did not counter the disease in a timely manner.

In recent days and with the spread of the epidemic in Iran, some have criticized that the coronavirus has spread to Iran at a time when this country, due to severe American sanctions, is in a difficult situation in obtaining medical equipment to counter the virus.

Pezeshkian in justifying the lack of medical equipment says: “The problem is not treatment, the problem is prevention, and in this prevention we do not have the necessary coordination that we should.”