Two coronavirus cases confirmed in Mexico as patients return from Italy
Tehran
Iran on Saturday rejected a report claiming that coronavirus has killed more than 200 people in the country, one of the hardest hit by the disease, with senior officials among those infected.
Since it announced its first coronavirus deaths, Iran has scrambled to bring the outbreak under control, shutting schools, suspending cultural and sporting events and halting meetings of the cabinet and parliament.
The health ministry on Saturday reported nine new deaths and a 53% jump in infections over the previous 24 hours taking the overall totals to 43 deaths and 593 cases.
It was the highest number of new cases for a single day since Iran announced its first two deaths in Qom, a centre for Islamic studies and pilgrims from abroad, on February 19.
Citing unnamed sources in Iran’s health system, the BBC’s Persian-language service said on Friday that at least 210 people had died in the COVID-19 outbreak.
Most of the dead were in Qom or in the capital Tehran, the London-based broadcaster said. Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour accused foreign media of spreading misinformation about the outbreak as he announced the new figures on Saturday.
“Given the rumours and false and contradictory content that may be published from satellite networks or media which are not well-intentioned towards Iranian people, I must say that what we publish as definitive statistics is based on the latest definitive findings of laboratory tests,” he told a televised news conference.
On Friday, he accused BBC Persian of joining Iran’s regional enemies in a “race to spread lies”. “Iran’s exemplary transparency in publishing information on the coronavirus has stunned many people,” Jahanpour tweeted.
The fear over the rapid spread of the virus is palpable on the streets of Tehran, which were less crowded than usual with people apparently staying at home.
Also read: Iranian VP for women, family affairs diagnosed with coronavirus: reports Traffic was flowing more freely than normal in the capital on Saturday morning, when it usually chokes the streets at the start of the working week.
The office of Tehran’s governor announced a reduction in working hours in a bid to reduce the chances of the virus spreading, state television reported.
Shops and pharmacies have been struggling to meet demand as people have been stocking up on bleach, disinfectant wipes, face masks and other sanitary products, as well as non-perishable food.
Mexico’s Health Ministry confirmed the country’s first cases of coronavirus on Friday, saying two men who recently returned from Italy tested positive for the virus.
Two other men who were part of the same group visiting Bergamo in northern Italy are under observation, a health ministry official said.
Italy is Europe’s epicentre with 650 cases and 17 deaths centred around cities in the north.
One of Mexico’s confirmed cases, a 35-year-old resident of the capital, “has a mild, mild illness,” with symptoms “similar to that of a cold,” said Hugo Lopez-Gatell, a senior health ministry official. “He is a young individual and so he is at very low risk.” —AFP
