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Iran coronavirus update: Over 31,500 dead, officials warn of new wave

Reporting by PMOI/MEK   

Iran, April 18, 2020—Over 31,500 people have died of the novel coronavirus in 294 cities checkered across all of Iran’s 31 provinces, according to reports tallied by the Iranian opposition People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) as of Saturday afternoon local time, April 18. The official death count declared by the regime is 5,031, less than a sixth of the actual figure.

The number of victims in various provinces include: 5,190 in Tehran, 2,520 in Razavi Khorasan, 2,210 in Isfahan, 2,040 in Mazandaran, 1,120 in East Azerbaijan, 1,330 in Khuzestan, 1,070 in Golestan, 875 in Kermanshah, 840 in West Azerbaijan, 705 in Lorestan, 510 in Semnan, and 410 in Qazvin. This is in addition to the figures reported from other provinces.

Over 31,500 dead of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Iran

Over 31,500 dead of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Iran

Medical sources in the city of Neyshabur in northeast Iran say at least 270 people have died in this city alone. The city’s hospitals and main cemetery are facing major difficulties as a result.

In Shiraz, south-central Iran, the number of victims has surpassed the 550 mark. The number of people who have lost their lives in Bushehr in southern Iran is at least 290. In Bukan, Saqqez and Piranshahr, cities that are located in northwest and western Iran, the number of coronavirus cases and deaths have been increasing during the past few days.

According to the regime’s official IRNA news agency, on Friday, April 17, Deputy Dean of Health Affairs in Shiraz Medical Sciences University said, “Fars Province is now considered among the code-red areas with the increase in coronavirus cases. In addition to Shiraz, COVID-19 cases have also been identified in the cities of Fasa, Neyriz, Eqlid, Khorrambid, Estahban, Darab, Khafr, Farashband, Kharameh, Lamerd, Arsenjan, Larestan, Kazerun, Abadeh, Evaz, Khonj, Marvdasht, Sepidan, Ghirokarzin, Firouzabad, Jahrom, Gerash, Bavanat, Zarqan, Beyza and Sarchehan.”

According to Tasnim news agency, affiliated to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Quds Force, Khuzestan Province Governor Gholamreza Shariati said on Friday, April 17, “We are facing an outburst of coronavirus cases in the city of Ramshir and this has rendered major difficulties in this city and across Khuzestan Province.”

According to the state-run Iran newspaper, Ali Maher, a member of the Tehran COVID-19 Task Force HQ said on Saturday, April 18, “The number of deaths and acute patients in Tehran have not decreased significantly… if the strict measures do not continue we will be facing a new wave of patients and our supplies are not enough to provide more medical service to the people. If we have an increase in illnesses, we will certainly have difficulties in allocating hospital beds to address the situation… The country’s status quo may have improved when looking at the death toll, however the stats in Tehran show a very slow recovery and low decrease in deaths. One cannot say the status quo has improved.”

 

Despite numerous warnings by regime officials and medical experts, regime president Hassan Rouhani declared today that he as ordered the health ministry to “examine the conditions of resuming medium-risk businesses” in cooperation with the security and social committee of the Coronavirus Task Force. This means that the government is planning to expose even more people to COVID-19 infection.

The state-run Setareyeh Sobh newspaper warned in its editorial: “In the current circumstances, on the one hand, tax revenue has declined due to the spread of coronavirus, and on the other hand, the price of oil has tanked to $20 per barrel, an 18-year low. If institutions such as Astan-e Qods Razavi, Setad, Mostazafan Foundation, 15 Khordad Foundation and others don’t put their wealth at the disposal of the people, we can forecast that economic growth in the current year will put the lives of the people in an even worse condition than the past two years.”

The mentioned institutions are overseen by regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei and account for over $200 billion in assets. Yet the regime still dithers in tapping into its vast financial resources to support the people's livelihoods and extend the quarantines.

Meanwhile, concerns about social uprisings continue to rise among regime officials and media. The government-run Iran newspaper published an article written by Abbas Akhundi, a former minister in the cabinets of Rouhani and Mohammad Khatami, titled, “Under the Skin of the Society,” in which he warned about the re-emergence of widespread protests such as the November 2019 nationwide uprising. “The decline of the middle class to the lower classes of the society will trigger widespread social disruptions. A large segment of the society has been marginalized and the bitter taste will cause resent and create an asymmetry in the society that can be dangerous for the entire population… and now, under these circumstances, coronavirus has appeared. The shutdown of businesses, the increase of unemployment, and damage to the income of more than seven deciles of the society will undoubtedly threaten the social and economic tolerance of the society. Therefore, to deal with the coronavirus, rather than an economic policy, we need a social policy.”

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), reminded that the regime’s health officials have tried to pretend that the number of cases is declining and are declaring the statistics that are being dictated by Khamenei to create the false impression that the outbreak has been contained. But the truth is that you can’t deceive the people with false figures, just as the people didn’t believe Rouhani’s claim that he didn’t know about the coronavirus outbreak until February 19.

 

 

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