Tehran (AFP)

Forty-three deaths from the new coronavirus have been reported in total in Iran, where authorities have dismissed as a "lie" a report of more than 200 deaths from the disease in the country.

On Saturday in Tehran, Kianouche Jahanpour, spokesman for the Ministry of Health, announced nine new deaths among 205 new cases detected. A total of 43 people died among 593 infected.

Among those infected are senior Iranian officials including Vice-President Massoumeh Ebtekar and Vice-Minister of Health Iraj Harirchi.

The new cases announced on Saturday represent the largest daily increase reported by the authorities since the announcement on February 19 of the first two deaths in Iran, in the holy Shiite city of Qom (center).

After being accused of downplaying the epidemic and mismanaging the situation, the government has promised to be more transparent.

The number of coronavirus deaths in Iran is the highest of any country other than China, where the epidemic began.

The 205 new cases have been detected in the last 24 hours, including 22 in Golestan, a province in northern Iran.

- "Exemplary transparency" -

At his press conference, Kianouche Jahanpour accused foreign media of spreading false information about the epidemic, citing "rumors and false and contradictory content".

He accused the BBC's Persian service of "joining Iran's regional enemies in a race to spread the lies".

"Iran's exemplary transparency in the publication of information on the coronavirus has stunned many people," Jahanpour wrote on his Twitter account.

On Friday, the BBC's Persian service, citing anonymous sources in the Iranian health care system, said at least 210 people had died from the Covid-19 disease in the country. Most of the people died in Tehran and Qom, according to the BBC.

Faced with the spread of the disease in Iran, many neighboring countries have announced that they have restricted travel to and from the Islamic Republic or closed their borders.

In Iran, traffic was much more fluid in the capital Tehran on Saturday, the beginning of the week in the country, while huge traffic jams generally block the streets.

Local authorities in Tehran have announced a reduction in working hours to limit the risk of spreading the virus, according to state television.

- Fire -

Shops and pharmacies are struggling to keep up with demand, with residents wanting to stock up on disinfectants and supplies.

A prevention campaign has been launched by the Tehran municipality with giant posters encouraging residents to follow hygiene guidelines - wash your hands regularly and avoid wearing rings on public transport, for example.

In Bandar Abbas (south), residents burnt down a clinic on Friday evening which, according to "unfounded rumors", was treating people infected with the new coronavirus, according to the Iranian news agency Fars.

"The unfounded rumor that several coronavirus patients ... were being kept at the clinic ... prompted residents to set it on fire," wrote Fars.

Police and firefighters arrived immediately and extinguished the fire in the clinic courtyard.

© 2020 AFP