Iran Witnessing “Declining Trend” in Coronavirus Deaths , Infections
IRAN NEWS NATIONAL DESK
TEHRAN – Health Ministry says the country is witnessing a “declining trend” in the number of fatalities and cases of new coronavirus infections as a result of bilateral cooperation between the people and the government.
Iraj Harirchi, the deputy minister of health, announced in Tehran Saturday that more than 50 percent of coronavirus cases, and about 70 percent of coronavirus-related deaths have decreased across the country.
“There is a declining trend in corona disease in most provinces and this has been the result of effective actions by the people and the government,” Harirchi said.
“I would like to emphasize that at a time when smart and gradual social distancing takes place, any violation can have serious and irreparable consequences,” he added.
The deputy health minister also predicted that there would be “two to three outbreaks” over a year in most of the world’s countries before the discovery of corona vaccines and drugs, underlining that people should stick to the stay-at-home slogan and avoid unnecessary commuting.
In a meeting of senior officials in charge of the National Headquarters for Managing and Fighting the Coronavirus in Tehran on Saturday, President Hassan Rouhani expressed optimism that the chain of transmission would break “to some extent” in the country as long as people continue to follow the guidelines drawn up by the government.
“We are on the path to control the disease but if the level of warnings and awareness of the people decreases, the disease may peak,” Rouhani said. “In this situation, we have to reinstate the restrictions. Of course, we hope that people will continue to take warnings seriously and not leave home except for their livelihood.”
“The path to fighting and controlling this disease definitely cannot be traversed without the support of the people.”
Iran’s Health Ministry announced a day earlier that the country was no longer “in the red” as the daily death toll from the coronavirus had begun to slow.
Meanwhile Head of Iran’s Health Ministry’s Public Relations Office Kianoush Jahanpour said on Saturday that 68,193 people out of a total of 89,328 infected with the coronavirus have survived while 5,650 have unfortunately succumbed to death.
Jahanpour said that 1,134 new affected cases have been detected since yesterday.
Over the last 24 hours, 76 people died due to the deadly virus, he added.
The Iranian official noted that 3,096 cases are in critical condition.
He went on to say that 410,075 tests have so far been carried out in Iran.
Iran has taken numerous steps to stop the spread of the disease, ranging from shutdown of schools and universities to cancellation of cultural and religious gatherings. It is also constantly disinfecting and sanitizing public places.
