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 Iran, the Middle East country hardest hit by the pandemic, began
relaxing its lockdown in mid-April, at least partly to boost an
economy battered by U.S. sanctions.
The Islamic Republic has recorded a total of 14,634 deaths from the
coronavirus, health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said on
state TV, adding that the country has seen 278,827 infections and
242,351 recoveries.
The previous record of deaths from the new coronavirus in a 24 hour
period was on July 9, when health ministry figures showed 221 people
had died.
Hospitals in Iran face acute shortages of medical personnel and beds
as the country tackles a powerful second wave of the COVID-19
pandemic, a senior official with Tehran’s anti-coronavirus task
force, Reza Jalili-Khoshnood, said last week.
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His comments contrasted with President Hassan Rouhani’s regular assurances that
Iran has sufficient supplies of medical personnel and facilities.
Rouhani and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the highest authority in the
country, are now regularly shown on state media wearing a mask, a means of
encouraging ordinary Iranians to also use masks more frequently.
(Reporting by Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Jan Harvey)
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