Coronavirus in Iran; Death Toll Becomes Three-Digit Again, 19 Provinces on Alert
The spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Health announced on Thursday, July 9, that the official number of coronavirus victims in the past 24 hours in the country was 221 people. With this figure, coronavirus has so far claimed 12,305 lives.
In the six months since the onset of the coronavirus outbreak in the world and Iran, this is the highest official death toll in the country, a point that the ministry’s spokesperson also noted.
This comes as even this official figure itself is doubted by many Islamic Republic officials who say the actual number of infected and victims is far higher.
Saeid Namaki, the Health Minister, said on Wednesday that “many people” did not take seriously the recommendations of responsible authorities and a “new wave” has hit our “very important and border” provinces.
He considered the increase in cases and deaths in Iran as the “price” of taking coronavirus lightly.
Sima Sadat Lari, the Health Ministry spokesperson, announced on Thursday, in addition to reporting 221 deaths, that “2,079 new COVID-19 patients were identified in the country, of which 995 were hospitalized.”
Accordingly, according to Ms. Lari, “the total number of COVID-19 patients in the country reached 250,458 people and… the total death toll from this disease reached 12,305 people.”
She continued: “At the same time, 3,324 COVID-19 patients are under intensive care due to the severity of this disease.”
She said: “Like previous days, the provinces of Khuzestan, Hormozgan, Bushehr, Kermanshah, Kurdistan, Ilam, West Azerbaijan and East Azerbaijan, and Razavi Khorasan are in red status and… the provinces of Tehran, Isfahan, Mazandaran, Golestan, Alborz, Kerman, Yazd, Sistan and Baluchestan, Hamadan, and Ardabil are in alert status.”
The increase in the number of coronavirus victims and infected in Iran comes as some experts still believe that the second wave has not yet begun in Iran and the Iranian people have not yet gotten over the first wave.
Meanwhile, the official IRNA news agency announced on Thursday the “ten-day closure of all sports complexes and activities of Tehran Municipality.”
Alireza Zali, commander of the coronavirus response headquarters in Tehran, said on Wednesday in an economic meeting of the coronavirus headquarters in Tehran province: strict and unrelenting restrictions must be implemented again, even if for a short period, with the aim of “temporarily allowing healthcare and medical personnel to rest.”
Source: Radio Farda
