The authorities in Iran, the major focus of the Corona virus in the Middle East, today announced that the number of deaths due to the epidemic has risen to 1,284, while the total number of people infected with it has jumped to 18,407.
The number of deaths rose after 149 new deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours across the country, 1,046 new infections were recorded, and 5979 patients recovered.
Also, a public relations official in the Iranian Ministry of Health, Kyanosh Jahanpur, said, in a statement to the official Iranian television, that one person dies every ten minutes in the country because of the virus.
"One person dies every 10 minutes in Iran due to the Coruna virus, and about 50 people contract the virus every hour," Jahanpur tweeted, via his Twitter account.
On the other hand, Tehran Governor Anushirwan Mohseni Bandabi said that 3900 people infected with Corona Virus are receiving health care in the hospitals of the capital Tehran alone, including 600 in critical condition.
Bandabi stressed the need for the Iranian people to take the authorities' warnings seriously, calling on the population not to travel and move except as necessary.
And Ali Reza Raisi, the Iranian Assistant Minister of Health, announced that his country would suffer heavy losses if it was unable to control the new Corona virus within 15 days.
"If we do not control the virus within a maximum of 15 days, then this requires that we fight for two months, and then we will suffer very great losses," Raisi said - during his participation in a meeting with a number of deans of Iranian medical colleges.
On the other hand, Iranian state television said yesterday that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will issue an amnesty Friday for 10 thousand prisoners, including political prisoners, on the occasion of the Iranian year and in light of the escalation of the Corona virus crisis.
The judiciary spokesman, Ghulam Hussein Ismaili, had announced on Tuesday that Iran had temporarily released about 85,000 people from prison, including political prisoners, as part of measures to confront Corona.
The head of the Iranian Nuclear Energy Organization, Ali Akbar Salehi, told state television today that his country will not celebrate the annual National Day of Nuclear Technology due to the outbreak of the Corona virus, a day when Iran annually reviews its nuclear achievements.
It is noteworthy that the new Corona virus (Covid-19) infected until this morning about 220 thousand in 176 countries and territories, of whom more than 8970 died, most of them in China, Italy, Iran, Spain, South Korea, Germany, France and the United States.
The spread of the virus on a global scale has forced many countries to close their borders, suspend their flights, cancel several events, and prevent gatherings, including Friday prayers.