(Fighting New Coronary Pneumonia) Global War Epidemic: Iranian New Year in Epidemic: Welcome Spring
China News Agency, Beijing, March 21st (Reporter Diao Haiyang) March 20th is the Iranian New Year's Noruz Festival, which is also the day when spring comes. Different from previous years, the festive atmosphere of this year is a little less lively and a little more tense due to the continuing epidemic of new crown pneumonia.
Nowuzi festival originated from the worship of fire and lasted more than 3,000 years. It is an important festival for Iranians and is equivalent to the Chinese Spring Festival. According to custom, on this day, Iranians want to reunite with their families, put on the traditional "seven fresh table", and embrace each other when the new year comes.
Under the epidemic, this year's Nowruz Festival has been deserted a lot. Many have responded to the government's call to stay at home, give up reuniting with family members, and not participate in celebrations. Stations, shopping malls, and bazaars in many parts of the country have experienced a sharp decline in traffic. Many housewives go out to buy food while wearing masks. Iran News News reported that many people choose to bless the New Year with a video call.
Mohamed Hadmi runs a clothing store in the capital Tehran. Nowruz has always been a busy time, but this year's business has been bleak. He said to the media: "This year's situation is really different. There are no customers at all, no business."
Mahdi Kasimi, who sells trinkets near Mohsinni Square in northern Tehran, said that people quickly walked past him without looking at the price of the goods. "People are afraid of the virus, they don't want to touch anything, they think they will take the virus home," Casimir said.
Nowuz has always been the peak season for Iran's retail and tourism industries. According to the Iranian "City News" report, during the Nowuz Festival last year, the hotel industry received 25 million guests and created 1.2 million temporary jobs; Mehrabad Airport, Tehran, has approximately 400 daily flights. This year there are only 20 sorties.
However, some people have refused to overly affect their lives due to the epidemic, and continue to choose to drive by car. The highway from Tehran to other places has been intensive for several days. This is not only related to the closure of some highways by the Iranian government, but also to the insufficient attention paid by some people to epidemic prevention.
Iran's supreme leader Khamenei and Iranian President Rouhani both spoke on the 20th to talk about the current epidemic. Yitong News reported that Khamenei said that the year just passed was a difficult year for Iran. It began with a flood and ended with an epidemic. The country also experienced earthquakes and sanctions. But in such difficulties, the Iranian people have achieved unprecedented achievements. Especially in the epidemic, people have made huge sacrifices and dedication.
Rouhani said that in the new year, health issues will become the government's top priority. With the efforts of medical staff, and with the support of the Iranian government and all the private sector, Iran will achieve its goal of overcoming the epidemic, achieving job growth and prosperity in the economic and cultural fields.
As of the 20th, the cumulative number of confirmed cases in Iran has reached nearly 20,000, with more than 1,400 deaths. Although Iran ’s prevention and control efforts have been continuously strengthened, the situation is still grim. Iranian Ministry of Health spokesman Jahanpur said recently that domestic medical supplies are lacking and some people do not cooperate in prevention and control, which has resulted in an average of 50 infections per hour in Iran.
The Nowruz holiday in Iran will last 13 days, which will also be an important period for Iran to curb the epidemic. If the Iranian people can reduce their outings and contacts, it may have a positive impact on the trend of the epidemic.
The Iranian embassy in China posted a post on Weibo on the 20th: "The Persian proverb says that a good year begins in spring. Although the epidemic casts a shadow over the festival, we still believe in the good hope of the New Year symbol. Chinese friends said today It happens to be the spring equinox of the twenty-four solar terms, the vernal equinox arrives, and all things are born. The good news that Hubei continues to be three consecutive zeros today is encouraging. I hope Iran, like China, will come out of the difficult time of fighting the epidemic as soon as possible. "(End)