Virus-Hit Iran Warns Against Weddings and Funerals

Tehran on Monday warned Iranians against holding wedding and funeral gatherings as the country's novel coronavirus outbreak showed no signs of abating, claiming another 212 lives.

"Despite repeated calls to not hold weddings and mourning ceremonies, reports from across the country still indicate they are taking place," said health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari.

"The presence of people at these overcrowded events increases the risk of mass infection," she added, in remarks aired on state television.

While there is no nationwide ban on weddings and funerals, the venues in which they are staged have been ordered shut and authorities have repeatedly urged people to keep such gatherings small.

 The Islamic republic has been battling to contain the Middle East's deadliest novel coronavirus outbreak since announcing its first cases on February 19.

Lari said another 212 people had died of the COVID-19 illness in the past 24 hours, bringing the country's overall death toll since February to 15,912.

She added that 2,434 new infections during the same period took the total case load to 293,606.

Government spokesman Ali Rabiei has also tested positive for the novel coronavirus, state news agency IRNA reported on Monday.

Rabiei had been "resting at home since late last week after showing some symptoms" but has since been hospitalized, IRNA added.

He is the latest high-profile Iranian official to contract the novel coronavirus. Several have died but most have recovered.

Virus-related deaths and infections in Iran have risen to record highs since hitting months-long lows in May.

That has prompted authorities to make masks mandatory in enclosed public spaces and reimpose restrictions in some areas.

Photo: IRNA

Confusion And Fear as Iran Says Millions May Have Virus

By Amir Havasi

President Hassan Rouhani's recent announcement that 25 million Iranians may have been infected with the coronavirus, a figure drastically higher than the country's official tally, has left many perplexed and fearful.

The shock statement came five months after Iran announced its first COVID-19 cases: the deaths of two people in the Shiite holy city of Qom.

It was compounded by Rouhani's suggestion his government was now hoping to overcome the Middle East's worst outbreak via herd immunity.

"Our estimate is that up to now 25 million Iranians have been infected with this virus," Rouhani told a virus taskforce meeting on Saturday.

Citing the results of a health ministry study, he warned that "30 to 35 million more may face infection" in the future and added that Iran had "not yet achieved herd immunity".

The number is far higher than the 15 million cases recorded worldwide and significantly more than some hard-hit countries such as the United States and Brazil.

It was also nearly 100 times worse than Iran's official infection figure of over 270,000 cases issued at the time by the health ministry.

Iran's toll has continued to climb since, with the virus having officially claimed 221 lives between Wednesday and Thursday, while infections climbed by 2,621.

Since he announced Saturday's massively elevated estimates, Rouhani has not mentioned them again, let alone elaborated.

But a slew of officials have since come up with their own explanations, with some saying the 25 million does not refer to full-blown infection cases but to all those who were "exposed" to COVID-19 and may now have a level of immunity.

'Strategic Mistake'

Iran's deputy health minister for research and technology said the figure was an estimate based on research carried out in March "on about 10,000 people in 13-14 provinces".

"It's been proven so far that these people's immunity is stable, meaning that they are like those vaccinated," Reza Malekzadeh told state news agency IRNA on Monday.

He did not name the provinces where this testing had taken place. Iran's population is more than 80 million.

A second deputy health minister, Alireza Raisi, said in a television interview that the figure of 25 million had been derived from serology tests.

Such tests are for antibodies and detect whether an individual has been exposed to any type of coronavirus, not just COVID-19, he said on Tuesday.

"In Iran and the world, various studies have been done on COVID-19 and the 25 million is the result of one such study and should not be seen as anything more than that," he said.

Raisi also denied Iran was now seeking to overcome the virus through herd immunity.

"Herd immunity is in no way part of (Iran's) policy and countries that have done it eventually regretted doing so," he said.

"There will be no immunity until we have a vaccine."

Responding to a suggestion that mentioning such figures and herd immunity may alarm the public, Raisi said in a veiled criticism that "emphasizing such numbers is a strategic mistake".

Yet according to Dr Emma Hodcroft, a molecular epidemiologist at the University of Basel, the estimate of "a country-wide seropositivity rate of 30 percent, from numbers given, would be far, far higher than we've found in any other country."

In an email to AFP, she noted that numbers that high were only found in "very hard-hit areas" like New York city, which is much smaller and more densely populated than Iran.

Hodcroft also warned against extrapolating numbers from antibody tests to the whole population, especially if they were done in very hard-hit areas of the country.

'Frightening'

Many on Tehran's streets appeared confused or disturbed by the president's statistics and complained of not having received an explanation.

"The way Mr. Rouhani put it, this means almost the whole population of Iran" have been or will be infected, said a 50-year-old businessman who only gave his name as Ashrafi.

"So, observing health protocols has been for nothing?" he added, saying the numbers were "frightening".

He also complained that Health Minister Said Namaki should have been the one who explained the figures and any move toward herd immunity.

Ashkan Daliri, a hairdresser in his 20s, said he believed the numbers to be real and "a bit scary".

He said he thought the announcement was meant to make "the people face reality so that they would be scared into observing health protocols more".

He added that herd immunity might be an effective way to control the outbreak, even though "it would mean more people would die".

An art teacher named Rezayi said she did not believe the numbers were actually so high.

"And even if they are, it's still hard to accept them given how the president has denied his statements before," she said.

She was referring to a comment Rouhani made days after the start of Iran's outbreak in February, when he said "everything will return to normal" within a few days.

Having come under criticism for seemingly trying to normalize the crisis, the government's spokesman later said that Rouhani meant a return to normal decision-making procedures by state bodies.

Photo: IRNA

Moscow Sees 'Chance' to Save Iran Nuclear Deal

Russia still believes there is hope of rescuing the nuclear deal with Iran, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.

"We are convinced that there is still a chance to return the (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) into a stable situation," Russia's top diplomat said as he met with Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Moscow.

"In any case, we will do everything to make it happen, just like our Iranian friends," he said.

Iran signed the agreement with the five UN Security Council members plus Germany in 2015, agreeing to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief, but the deal has been on life support since US President Donald Trump withdrew from it and unilaterally reimposed sanctions in 2018.

Iran has since taken small but escalating steps away from compliance with the nuclear accord as it presses for renewed relief from sanctions.

Both ministers remarked that the deal "turned five years old" last week, with Zarif calling it a "historical international agreement."

After the two greeted each other with an elbow bump, Zarif thanked Russia for its "remarkable" efforts to keep the deal alive.

Iran's economy has been hard-hit by the US sanctions, which have scared off most international banks and firms from re-engaging with Tehran, and it has been further battered by the coronavirus epidemic.

Photo: Russian MFA

US Presence Cause of Insecurity: Khamenei Tells Visiting Iraq PM

By Amir Havasi

Iran's supreme leader told Iraq's visiting premier on Tuesday that Tehran will not interfere in Baghdad's relations with Washington, but warned that the US presence next door to Iran was a cause of insecurity.

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi of Iraq met Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the Iranian capital during his first trip abroad since taking office.

"Iran will not interfere in Iraq's relations with America but expects Iraqi friends to know America and realize that their presence in any country causes corruption, ruin and destruction," the Iranian leader said, according to his official website.

"The Islamic republic expects... (the Iraqi) parliament's decision to expel the Americans to be adhered to since their presence is a cause of insecurity."

Khamenei pointed to the US killing of Iran's top general Qasem Soleimani in a January drone strike in Baghdad, after which parliament voted to expel US troops.

"They killed your guest in your house and blatantly confessed to it."

Iran "will never forget this and will certainly deal a reciprocal blow to the Americans", Khamenei said.

Iran retaliated for Soleimani's death days after by firing a volley of missiles at US troops stationed in Iraq, but US President Donald Trump opted against responding militarily.

While the attack on the western Iraqi base of Ain al-Asad left no US soldiers dead, dozens suffered brain trauma.

According to Khamenei, Iran was opposed to "whatever may weaken the Iraqi government" in contrast to the US, which he said did not want "an independent, strong Iraqi government elected by popular vote".

Tug-of-War

Kadhemi had been scheduled to visit Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia as his first trip abroad, then quickly follow it up with a trip to Tehran, in a carefully calibrated balancing act.

The Saudi leg was postponed after King Salman was hospitalised on Monday.

Baghdad has often found itself caught in the tug-of-war between Riyadh, Tehran and Washington, which Kadhemi is also set to visit within weeks.

Kadhemi rose to the premiership in May after serving as head of Iraq's National Intelligence Service for nearly four years.

He formed close ties to Tehran, Washington and Riyadh during that time, prompting speculation he could serve as a rare mediator between the capitals.

His trip to Tehran comes after he received Iran's top diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif in Baghdad on Sunday.

Relations between the two countries were not always close -- they fought a bloody war from 1980 to 1988.

Tehran's influence in Baghdad grew after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq toppled the government of Saddam Hussein.

Iran is now said to have significant leverage over many of Iraq's Shiite political groups.

$20 Billion Trade Goal

Iraq's delegation includes the ministers of foreign affairs, finance, health and planning, as well as Kadhemi's national security adviser, some of whom also met their Iranian counterparts.

Kadhemi also held talks with President Hassan Rouhani to discuss closer trade ties, fighting the novel coronavirus and efforts to ensure regional stability, state television said.

"The two governments' will is to expand bilateral trade ties to $20 billion," Rouhani said after their hour-long meeting.

Iraq is one of Iran's main markets for non-oil exports but trade has dipped as the COVID-19 pandemic forced temporary border closures.

Rouhani said Iran was ready to "stand with Iraq for the stability and security of Iraq and the region".

He hailed as "heroes" Soleimani and an Iraqi commander killed alongside him in the US drone strike near Baghdad airport.

"I deem it necessary to honor the two heroes of the fight against terrorism, martyrs General Qasem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis," he said.

The Iranian president also pledged to help Baghdad fight coronavirus.

Iran says COVID-19 has claimed more than 14,600 lives and infected 278,800 in the country, while Iraq has reported close to 4,000 virus deaths and 97,000 cases.

Photo: IRNA

Emirates Resumes Iran Flights After Five-Month Break

Dubai-based Emirates airlines resumed flights to the Iranian capital on Friday after a five-month break due to shutdowns to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Iran, the worst-hit country in the Middle East, has been scrambling to contain the pandemic since it reported its first two COVID-19 deaths in February.

Neighboring countries imposed travel curbs and strict quarantine measures after the first cases of their own days later, mostly in travelers with links to Iran.

The 16 passengers on the Emirates flight from Dubai passed through a disinfection tunnel and had their body temperature checked upon arrival at Tehran's airport.

In the departures lounge, masked outgoing passengers lined up at the Emirates check-in counter while an airport worker disinfected dozens of luggage trolleys.

The United Arab Emirates was among a list of countries that suspended all air links with Iran in February, along with nearby Armenia, Iraq, Kuwait and Turkey.

The UAE, of which Dubai is a member, is a key international transit route for Iranians and had daily flights to Iran.

"My colleagues and I screened the passengers for symptoms with interviews and we also have thermal sensors," said Nadia Piri, one of the airport's resident doctors.

Passengers had to fill in forms on arrival, Piri said, and would have to self-isolate for 14 days.

Airport deputy head Mohammadreza Karimian said a number of airlines have asked to resume flights to Iran.

"Different airlines have made requests, considering that we observe all health protocols throughly," he said, without naming them.

Photo: Wikicommons

Rouhani Says 35 Million Iranians Face Virus Infection

President Hassan Rouhani said Saturday that 35 million Iranians may contract the coronavirus, as the country still did not have herd immunity although a quarter of the population may have already been infected.

It appears to be the first time a senior Iranian official has indicated the country is seeking to defeat COVID-19 via herd immunity.

The virus has killed more than 588,000 people and infected nearly 14 million around the world since first being detected in China late last year.

Iran has been battling a resurgence of COVID-19, with figures showing a rise in both new infections and deaths since a two-month low in May.

On Saturday, the health ministry reported another 188 coronavirus deaths and 2,166 cases of infection in the past 24 hours.

That took the overall toll to 13,979 dead out of 271,606 cases since Iran reported its first cases in mid-February.

The rising toll has prompted authorities to reimpose restrictions in worst-hit provinces after being lifted country-wide in April, with Tehran extending them for an extra week on Friday.

"Our estimate is that up to now, 25 million Iranians have been infected with this virus," Rouhani said during a televised meeting of the country's virus-fighting taskforce.

"We have to consider the possibility that 30 to 35 million more may face infection," he added, citing the results of a study by the health ministry.

"We have not yet achieved herd immunity and we have no choice but to be united and break the chain of transmission of the coronavirus."

Rouhani's deputy head of communications, Alireza Moezi, said on Twitter hours later that the 25 million in fact refers to "those who have encountered the virus and achieved complete immunity".

Rouhani also said that Iran may have to prepare itself for double the amount of hospitalizations it has had in the past five months, according to the study.

The study shows that "out of every 1,000 infected, 500 show no symptoms" Rouhani added, warning that they present the main challenge by "spreading more virus and over a longer period" than those identified.

The health ministry does not report the overall amount of hospitalizations over COVID-19.

The Islamic republic has been struggling to contain the Middle East's worst COVID-19 outbreak since announcing its first cases in mid-February.

Iran has refrained from imposing full lockdowns but closed schools, cancelled public gatherings and banned travel between provinces in March, before lifting the restrictions the next month to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Hit by New Fire that Destroys Shipyard

A fire broke out Wednesday at an Iranian shipyard in the southwestern port of Bushehr, damaging several vessels under construction without causing any casualties, local media reported. 

“An extensive fire has engulfed Delvar Kashti Bushehr boat factory," with thick smoke covering the area south of Bushehr city, state television IRIB reported. 

Five to seven vessels were damaged by the blaze, the cause of which was unknown, Bushehr government official Jahangir Dehghani was quoted as saying by the semi-official ISNA news agency.

Video footage on IRIB's website showed a fire truck and several men dousing smoldering vessels which appeared to be fishing boats.

Iran's only nuclear power plant is located about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from Bushehr.

The incident is the latest in a string of fires and explosions at military and civilian sites across Iran in recent weeks.

Two explosions rocked the capital Tehran in late June, one near a military site and the other in a health centre, the latter killing 19 people. 

Fires or blasts also hit a factory south of the city last week, leaving two people dead, and the Natanz nuclear complex, about 250 kilometres south of Tehran. 

Iranian authorities called the Natanz fire an "accident" without elaborating and later said they would not reveal the cause, citing "security reasons.”

The string of fires and explosions have prompted speculation in Iran that they may be the result of sabotage by Israel.

Photo: IRIB

Iran Says Virus Death Toll Tops 13,000

Iran reported on Monday more than 200 new coronavirus fatalities that took the overall toll in the Middle East's deadliest outbreak beyond 13,000.

"Unfortunately, in the past 24 hours, we have lost 203 of our compatriots due to the COVID-19 disease," said health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari.

"Based on this figure, the total number of victims has reached 13,032," she told a televised news conference.

Lari said another 2,349 people had tested positive for the virus, raising the overall figure in the country's outbreak to 259,652.

Iran has been struggling to contain the virus since announcing its first cases in February—two deaths in the Shiite holy city of Qom.

The Islamic republic has refrained from enforcing full lockdowns to stop the pandemic's spread.

Official figures have shown an upward trajectory in new confirmed cases since early May, when Iran hit a near two-month low in daily recorded infections.

The Iranian government made the wearing of masks compulsory in closed public spaces from July 4, including on public transport.

State television, whose presenters now wear masks, said on Monday that police in Tehran were stopping commuters without masks from entering the subway.

Authorities in Qom tightened controls in banks and administrative offices to ensure the implementation of health protocols, including mask-wearing, Tasnim news agency reported on Monday.

The health ministry spokeswoman called on everyone to keep a physical distance from others, to wash their hands and to use masks.

"The more time you spend in an overcrowded environment, the more likely you are to contract the disease," Lari said.

Iran closed schools, cancelled public events and banned movement between its 31 provinces in March, but progressively lifted restrictions from April to try to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

The economy is suffering under the pressures of the health crisis.

The country's currency, the rial, has hit new lows against the US dollar in recent weeks, mostly over border closures and a halt in non-oil exports, according to analysts.

Photo: IRNA

Iran's Khamenei Urges Fight Against 'Tragic' Virus Resurgence

Iran's supreme leader Sunday called the resurgence of the novel coronavirus in the country "truly tragic" and urged all citizens to help stem what has been the region's deadliest outbreak.

"Let everyone play their part in the best way to break the chain of transmission in the short term and save the country," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a video conference with lawmakers, according to his office.

Iran has been struggling to contain the outbreak since announcing its first cases in February, and has reported more than 12,800 deaths since then.

Khamenei's speech was his first to MPs since the new parliament took office at the end of May, dominated by conservatives and ultra-conservatives elected in February polls.

According to his official site, Khamenei praised healthcare workers for "their sacrifices.”

But he also strongly criticized "some people who do not even do something as simple as wearing a mask", saying he felt "ashamed" of such behavior.

Khamenei's comments came as infections have again been on the rise in Iran since early May.

According to figures announced Sunday, 194 deaths from the COVID-19 disease and 2,186 new cases were recorded in the past 24 hours.

The health ministry announced a record 221 deaths in a single day on Thursday.

In total, 257,303 cases have been reported in the country, including 12,829 deaths, health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said Sunday in a televised press conference.

The rising toll has prompted authorities to make masks mandatory in enclosed public spaces and to allow the hardest-hit provinces to reimpose other measures against the virus.

Iran had closed schools, cancelled public events and banned movement between its 31 provinces in March, but the government progressively lifted restrictions from April to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

On Saturday, President Hassan Rouhani said the country could not afford to shut down the economy, even as the outbreak worsened.

Iran must continue "economic, social and cultural activities while observing health protocols", Rouhani said during a televised virus taskforce meeting.

But he reminded Iranians that restrictions, such as a ban on public and private gatherings, remained in place.

"Gatherings, whether for funerals, weddings, parties, seminars or festivals are all harmful" to public health, Rouhani said.

Authorities have previously reported the spread of the virus in areas where such bans had been ignored.

On Sunday, Khamenei also told lawmakers that "parliament has the right to question... but is not permitted to insult or slander government officials".

His comments came a week after a session in which MPs heckled Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, largely over his key role in negotiating a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

The deal had given the Islamic republic relief from international sanctions in return for limits on its nuclear program, but Iranian conservatives staunchly opposed the multilateral agreement, arguing the US could never be trusted.

The US unilaterally abandoned the accord in 2018 as a prelude to reimposing biting sanctions.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says Cannot Shut Down Economy Despite Worsening Virus Outbreak

Iran said on Saturday that it cannot afford to shut down its sanctions-hit economy, even as the country's novel coronavirus outbreak worsens with record-high death tolls and rising infections.

Iran must continue "economic, social and cultural activities while observing health protocols", President Hassan Rouhani said during a televised virus taskforce meeting. 

"The simplest solution is to close down all activities, (but) the next day, people would come out to protest the (resulting) chaos, hunger, hardship and pressure," he added.

The Islamic republic has been struggling since late February to contain the country's COVID-19 outbreak, the deadliest in the Middle East.

Health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari reported Saturday that 188 people had died from the respiratory disease in the past 24 hours, raising the overall toll to 12,635.

Iran's daily COVID-19 death toll has topped 100 since around mid-June, with a record single-day tally of 221 reported on Thursday. 

Lari also raised the country's caseload to 255,117, with 2,397 new infections recorded.

The outbreak's rising toll has prompted authorities to make wearing masks mandatory in enclosed public spaces and to allow the hardest hit provinces to reimpose restrictive measures.

Iran closed schools, cancelled public events and banned movement between its 31 provinces in March, but Rouhani's government progressively lifted restrictions from April to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

Iran has suffered a sharp economic downturn after US President Donald Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed crippling sanctions.

The International Monetary Fund predicts Iran's economy will shrink by six percent this year.

"It is not possible to keep businesses and economic activities shut down in the long-term," Rouhani said, emphasizing that "the people will not accept this.”

Health Minister Said Namaki warned on Wednesday of a potential "revolt over poverty" and blamed US sanctions for the government's "empty coffers.”

The reopening of the economy "was not over our ignorance (of the virus' dangers), but it was due to us being on our knees against an economy that could take no more", Namaki said on state television.

US sanctions targeted vital oil sales and banking relations, among other sectors, forcing Iran to rely on non-oil exports, which have dropped as borders were closed to stem the spread of the virus.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Hits Record One-Day Virus Death Toll of 221

Iran reported a new single-day record death toll of 221 from the novel coronavirus on Thursday, after weeks of rising numbers in the Middle East's worst-hit country.

"Unfortunately in the past 24 hours we have lost 221 of our compatriots to the COVID-19 disease," health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari told a televised news conference. "The death toll has now reached 12,305."

The Islamic republic has been struggling to combat the outbreak since announcing its first cases in February. 

“The number of (new) cases identified (since Wednesday) is 2,079," Lari said, bringing the total number of infections to 250,458. 

 In response to the resurgence of the disease, the authorities have made the wearing of masks mandatory in covered public places and are considering imposing further restrictions in the hardest hit provinces.

Stemming the coronavirus "requires the help of you, dear people, listening to our health advice", Lari said, before again urging the public to wear masks and respect social distancing.

Photo: IRNA

Tehran Mayor Sees 'Threat' in Iranians' Dissatisfaction

By Amir Havasi

Iran's low voter turnout reflects a wider malaise in a country long buckling under sanctions and more recently also hit hard by the coronavirus, spelling "a threat for everyone," Tehran's mayor Pirouz Hanachi told AFP.

"The turnout at the ballot box is a sign of people's satisfaction level," said Hanachi, mayor of Iran's political and business centre and largest city, with more than eight million people.

"When there is dissatisfaction with the government or the state, it then reaches everyone and that includes the municipality too," he said in an interview on Tuesday.

Iran has suffered the double blow of a sharp economic downturn caused by US economic sanctions over its contested nuclear program, and the region's most deadly COVID-19 outbreak.

Reformists allied with moderate President Hassan Rouhani lost their parliamentary majority in a landslide conservative victory in February, in a major setback ahead of presidential elections next year.

Voter turnout hit a historic low of less than 43 percent in the February polls after thousands of reformist candidates were barred from running by the Islamic republic's powerful Guardian Council.

Such voter fatigue "can be a threat for everyone, not just reformists or conservatives," warned the mayor, a veteran public servant with a background in urban development who is tied to the reformist camp.

The conservative resurgence reflects dissatisfaction with the Rouhani camp that had sought reengagement with the west and the reward of economic benefits—hopes that were dashed when US President Donald Trump in 2018 pulled out of a landmark nuclear deal and reimposed crippling sanctions.

The International Monetary Fund predicts Iran's economy will shrink by six percent this year.

"We're doing our best, but our situation is not a normal one," Hanachi said. "We are under sanctions and in a tough economic situation."

As he spoke in his town hall office, the shouts of angry garbage truck drivers echoed from the street outside, complaining they had not received pay or pensions for months.

The mayor downplayed the small rally as the kind of event that could happen in "a municipality in any other country", adding that the men were employed not by the city itself but by contractors.

Shrinking Economy

Iran's fragile economy, increasingly cut off from international trade and deprived of crucial oil revenues, took another major blow when the novel coronavirus pandemic hit in late February.

Since then the outbreak has killed more than 12,000 people and infected over 248,000, with daily fatalities reaching a record of 200 early this week, according to official figures.

A temporary shutdown of the economy in recent months and closed borders sharply reduced non-oil exports, Iran's increasingly important lifeline.

This accelerated the plunge of the Iranian rial against the US dollar, threatening to further stoke an already high inflation rate.

In just one impact, said Hanachi, the Teheran municipality lost two trillion rial ($9 million) because of sharply reduced demand for public transport in recent months.

As many Tehran residents got back into their cars to avoid tightly-packed subways and buses, this has done nothing to help solve Tehran's long standing air pollution issue.

Tehran has had only 15 "clean" air quality days since the March 20 Persian New Year, according to the municipality.

One of Hanachi's tasks is to fight both the virus and air pollution—a tough juggling act as car travel is safer for individuals but also worsens the smog that often cloaks the capital.

The mayor said he worried that, after restrictions on car travel were reimposed in May to reduce air pollution, subways are once again packed during peak hours, as is the bustling city centre.

Tehran's Grand Bazaar, which is now crowded with shoppers, warned Hanachi, "can become a focal point for the epidemic." 

Photo: IRNA

Iran Reports Record One-Day Coronavirus Death Toll of 200

Iran announced on Tuesday 200 more deaths from the coronavirus, the most in a single day since the Middle East's deadliest outbreak began in February.

The previous record was Sunday's toll of 163 deaths.

"Unfortunately in the past 24 hours we have lost 200 of our compatriots, bringing the total number of victims to 11,931," health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said on state television.

"The increase in the number of deaths is very painful for all of us," she said, adding that it was "the result of all of our behavior and actions".

Another 2,637 people have tested positive for the virus, taking the total official number of cases to 245,688, Lari said.

Officially recorded deaths and infections from the virus have been steadily rising since Iran reported a near-two-month low in daily recorded cases in early May.

The resurgence shown by official statistics prompted the government to oblige people to wear masks in enclosed public spaces or when gathering in groups from July 4.

But authorities have repeatedly warned against what they view as a lax attitude by citizens towards masks, while also expressing concerns about people continuing to gather in groups.

"Always have a mask on you when you go out," Lari emphasized on Tuesday.

She also said that infections had risen sharply in one area, which she did not name, after a string of weddings there in recent days.

Iran never imposed a full lockdown in its fight against coronavirus.

Instead, it banned gatherings, particularly in religious and sporting arenas. It also restricted business activity, alongside travel, among other measures.

But economic pressure—already intense before the arrival of coronavirus, due to hefty US sanctions—saw the government progressively allow businesses to open up again from April, as the growth in infections appeared to slow.

State news agency IRNA on Tuesday reported that 12 members of one of the country's top football clubs, Esteghlal, had tested positive for the virus.

Iran's football season had got back under way on June 25, after a four-month suspension due to the pandemic.

Authorities have allowed provinces hardest hit by the virus's resurgence to reimpose restrictions.

Senior Iranian officials, including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani, have sought to set an example by being seen to wear masks—a campaign also driven home by state TV.

Enforcement of this measure has sometimes proved difficult, especially in the capital, with many residents remaining reluctant to wear masks even on public transport, where doing so has been compulsory for over two months.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says Accord Under Negotiation With China 'Not Secret'

Iran has been negotiating a 25-year accord with China and the terms will be announced once a deal is struck, the foreign minister told a stormy session of parliament Sunday.

"With confidence and conviction, we are negotiating a 25-year strategic accord with China," Iran's top trading partner, Mohammad Javad Zarif said.

During the session, Zarif was heckled by lawmakers, largely over his key role in negotiating a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which the US unilaterally abandoned in 2018 as a prelude to reimposing biting sanctions. 

It was his first address to parliament since a new house started work in late May in the wake of elections that were dominated by conservatives and ultra-conservatives.

Zarif insisted there was "nothing secret" about the prospective China deal.

The nation would be informed "when an accord has been concluded", he said, adding that the intention had already been made public in January 2016 when President Xi Jinping visited Tehran.

China is also a key market for Iranian crude exports, which have been severely curtailed by the US sanctions.

The 2015 nuclear deal had given the Islamic republic relief from international sanctions in return for limits on its nuclear program, but Iranian conservatives staunchly opposed that multilateral agreement, arguing the US could never be trusted.

But Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has come out publicly in support of a strategic bilateral partnership with China.

The planned China deal has been a hot topic on Iranian social media since populist ex-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last month condemned negotiations underway with a foreign country.

Photo: IRNA

Canada, Sweden Pave Way for Compensation Talks with Iran on Downed Plane

Canada announced Thursday an agreement to launch negotiations with Iran on compensation for the families of the foreign victims of a Ukrainian passenger plane shot down in January, with Sweden expressing confidence Tehran would pay.

An international "coordination and response group" of countries whose nationals died on the plane signed a memorandum of understanding, formally paving the way for negotiations with Tehran, according to a Canadian government statement.

The countries—Canada, Britain, Ukraine, Sweden and Afghanistan—each had citizens die when Tehran's armed forces mistakenly shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.

"The five states created the legal structure necessary to start these negotiations," Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne told AFP.

"It is a first step—necessary but only a first step—to begin negotiations to obtain reparations for the victims' families," he said.

Earlier in the day, Sweden's Foreign Minister Ann Linde told news agency TT that Tehran had agreed to compensate the families of foreign victims.

There is "no doubt" that Iran would follow through on the compensation, she said, adding that it was still unclear what sums would be paid out.

"We have signed an agreement of mutual understanding that we will now negotiate with Iran about amends, compensation to the victims' next of kin," Linde said.

Ukraine, the group's designated speaker on the negotiations, will be responsible for proposing a date to launch the talks in Tehran, Champagne said.

"These kinds of negotiations generally take several months or even years," added Champagne, whose country chairs the coordinated group.

"Iran had indicated to us its desire to start negotiations. I always judge Iran not by its words but by its actions," he warned.

The 176 victims of the crash, which occurred shortly after taking off from Tehran airport on January 8, were mostly Iranian-Canadians.

Of countries apart from Iran, Canada was the hardest hit, with a total of 85 victims (both citizens and permanent residents).

The Islamic Republic admitted days after the downing that its forces accidentally shot the Kiev-bound jetliner.

At the end of June Iran officially enlisted the help of France's BEA air accident agency to download and read the data on the flight recorder.

Ottawa had been demanding that Iran, which does not have the technical means to extract and decrypt the data, send the plane's black boxes abroad.

Photo:

US Seeks to Seize Iran Oil Cargoes Bound for Venezuela

The US Justice Department issued a warrant Thursday to seize the cargoes of four tankers carrying Iranian oil to Venezuela, tying the shipments to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, which Washington calls a terror group.

The Justice Department filed a forfeiture complaint and warrant in federal court in Washington for the cargoes of the tankers Bella, Bering, Pandi and Luna—currently en route from Iran to Venezuela.

The US alleges that the shipments involve parties affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which the United States has designated a "foreign terrorist organization."

A court complaint citing a "confidential source" said Mahmoud Madanipour, who has ties to the IRGC, arranged the shipments for Venezuela, using offshore front companies and ship-to-ship transfers to avoid sanctions on Iran.

"Profits from petroleum sales support the IRGC's full range of nefarious activities, including the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, support for terrorism, and a variety of human rights abuses, at home and abroad," the Justice Department said in a statement.

It was not immediately clear how the US government intended to seize the cargoes.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says Still in First Wave of Virus Outbreak

Iran's coronavirus epidemic is still in its first wave, the government said Tuesday as it announced nearly 150 new deaths a day after reporting a record high daily toll.

The Islamic republic has struggled to contain COVID-19 since it reported its first cases—two deaths—in the Shiite holy city of Qom in late February.

Official figures have shown a rising trajectory in new confirmed cases since early May, when Iran hit a near two-month low in daily recorded infections.

But officials have repeatedly denied the upward trend amounts to a second wave.

"The coronavirus is currently peaking in border provinces or cities which did not experience a peak in the first months of the outbreak," health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said on Tuesday.

"Therefore, we're still witnessing the first wave in the country," she said, quoted by state news agency IRNA.

Lari said Iran would only have a second wave if there was another rise in cases in provinces that "had a significant peak" when the first cases were declared.

Iran recorded 162 deaths from the novel coronavirus on Monday, its highest figure for a single day since the start of the outbreak on February 19.

Lari on Tuesday reported 147 new fatalities, raising overall deaths to 10,817.

She also raised the country's COVID-19 caseload to 227,662, with 2,457 new infections in the past 24 hours.

Vaccine in Making

Authorities have so far refrained from enforcing full lockdowns to stop the pandemic's spread and the use of masks and protective equipment has been optional in most areas.

Iran closed schools, cancelled public events and banned movement between its 31 provinces in March, but the government gradually lifted restrictions from April to try to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

The increasing virus caseload has seen some previously largely unscathed provinces classified as "red"—the highest level on Iran's color-coded risk scale—with authorities allowed to reimpose restrictive measures if required.

They include Bushehr, Hormozgan, Kermanshah, Khuzestan, Khorasan Razavi, Kurdistan, and West and East Azerbaijan, all located along Iran's borders.

Iran has announced that wearing masks will be made mandatory in covered public spaces as of next week.

Authorities have for weeks been urging citizens to use protective equipment.

"Our attempts so far have been to avoid entering the second wave" of the outbreak, government spokesman Ali Rabiei told a news conference on Tuesday.

"Considering the problems the coronavirus has created for the economy, we have no choice but to try to live healthily in co-existence with the virus every day," he added.

Iran's health minister Said Namaki said on Tuesday that a coronavirus vaccine in the making has "mostly passed animal models successfully" and that the country "will start human clinical trials soon.”

Phoro: IENA

World Rebukes U.S. Over Iran

By Colum Lynch and Robbie Gramer

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sought to reassert America’s waning influence on the world stage, challenging the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday to extend a U.N. arms embargo that is due to expire in October. Instead, America’s top diplomat received a scolding from friends and foes alike in the 15-nation council, which roundly criticized Washington for withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal two years ago without a clear plan to limit Tehran’s nuclear activities.

On a day when the European Union pointedly excluded the United States from a “safe list” of countries permitted to travel to the 27-member bloc, the council’s chilly reception of Pompeo added to a portrait of an increasingly isolated United States and underscored how little deference other countries pay the Trump administration as it faces a grim reelection contest. The U.N. debate came amid a sharpening blowback in Washington to revelations that the Trump administration failed to act on months of intelligence warnings that Russia offered Taliban fighters bounties to kill U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan. 

The dispute centered on the fate of the nearly moribund 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which capped Iran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon but which the United States abandoned in May 2018. European parties to the deal, like Iran, want to keep it alive; the Trump administration wants to kill it before the election, lest any future Democratic administration bring it back to life. 

The latest battleground is one provision of that deal, the planned expiry in October of a U.N. arms embargo on Iran—one of the sweeteners of the nuclear deal. U.S. allies, including the security council’s five European states, share Washington’s concern about Iran’s arms trade, though Europe’s own arms embargo is set to continue until 2023 regardless. But they worry that extending the U.N. arms embargo, in clear violation of the pact signed in 2015, would drive Tehran to kick out nuclear inspectors and set the stage for an even quicker development of its nuclear program. 

“The [Iran nuclear pact], which is the result of compromise, can of course be seen as an instrument that can be improved,” France’s U.N. ambassador, Nicolas de Rivière, told the council. “There is as yet no serious alternative to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and its disappearance would improve neither the regional situation nor the security of our populations.”

Since President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the deal, Iran has violated key tenets of the accord by increasing its stockpiles of nuclear fuel and resuming its enrichment of uranium, according to assessments from the International Atomic Energy Agency. 

At the opening of Tuesday’s virtual session, Rosemary DiCarlo, a former U.S. State Department official who serves as U.N. undersecretary-general for political affairs, praised the nuclear pact as a “significant achievement of multilateral diplomacy and dialogue” and expressed “regret” over the U.S. decision to withdraw, noting that Iran was in compliance with the pact before Trump’s abrupt decision to pull the plug.

But she also expressed regret that since July 2019 Iran has violated key provisions of the nuclear pact, surpassing limits on the size of its stockpiles of heavy water and low-enriched uranium and engaging in prohibited nuclear research and development activities. 

DiCarlo also flagged Iran’s role in missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia, as well as arms shipments to proxies in Yemen that appear to run afoul of the provisions of the key U.N. Security Council resolution that endorsed the nuclear deal. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif dismissed claims that Iranian-made weapons were being transferred to Yemen and elsewhere in violation of U.N. sanctions. 

But the draft has little support among major powers at the U.N., reflecting Washington’s isolation on its Iran policy.

“The international community in general and the U.N. Security Council in particular are facing an important decision,” Zarif told the council. “Do we maintain respect of the rule of law, or do we return to the law of the jungle by surrendering to the whims of an outlaw bully?”

The Trump administration this month circulated a draft resolution to extend the arms embargo on Iran, but veto-wielding China and Russia signaled they would not support the U.S. plan. European powers also reacted coolly to the resolution and are expected to introduce their own stopgap proposal to extend parts of the arms embargo for up to six months. It is unclear if the United States would support their plan. 

The Trump administration has charged Tehran with playing a destabilizing role in the Middle East through its support of proxy terrorist groups in the region. Pompeo said that if the United Nations did not extend the arms embargo, it would pave the way for Iran to procure advanced military hardware from Russia and China that would undercut regional stability and potentially threaten capitals in Europe and even South Asia—reiterating misleading claims he made last week about the operational range of high-end Russian and Chinese fighters. 

“If you fail to act, Iran will be free to purchase Russian-made fighter jets that can strike up to a 3,000-kilometer radius, putting cities like Riyadh, New Delhi, Rome, and Warsaw in Iranian crosshairs,” Pompeo told the council during Tuesday’s virtual meeting. 

“Don’t just take it from the United States; listen to countries in the region. From Israel to the Gulf, countries in the Middle East—who are most exposed to Iran’s predations—are speaking with one voice: Extend the arms embargo,” he said. 

Photo: State Department

Saudi, US Push For Extension of Iran Arms Embargo

US and Saudi officials on Monday called for extending a UN arms embargo on Iran, warning of major implications for regional security, accusing Tehran of arming Yemeni rebels.

The embargo, put in place as part of a nuclear accord signed with Tehran in 2015, is set to expire in October but Washington is working to extend the ban as tensions with its arch-rival remain high.

Lifting the ban would "embolden" Tehran and could trigger a regional arms race, US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook told reporters in Riyadh.

"This is not an outcome that the UN Security Council can accept," Hook said at a joint news conference with Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs.

At the conference venue, Saudi officials displayed remnants of intercepted missiles and drones they said were supplied by Iran to Yemen's Huthi rebels.

Iran denies arming the rebels.

The Huthis have recently targeted Saudi cities, including the capital Riyadh, with a series of missile and drone strikes.

 "Iran seeks to provide weapons to terrorist organizations. What will happen if the embargo is lifted?" Jubeir said.

 "Iran will become more... aggressive," he added.

Earlier this month, a UN report said cruise missiles and drones used in attacks last year on Saudi oil facilities were "of Iranian origin".

The attacks on Saudi state oil giant Aramco's facilities caused extensive damage and briefly interrupted production of half of the country's oil output.

Russia, China Vetoes at UN

Hook said later in Bahrain that if the arms embargo expired, Iran would be able to acquire advanced arms and pose a greater threat to Gulf security and international shipping.

“It will trigger an arms race in one region that needs it the least," Hook said on his second leg of the Gulf tour to garner support for extending the arms embargo on Iran.

Allowing the UN arms embargo to expire would be a betrayal of the security council's responsibility of maintaining international peace and security, he said.

The US official also said that the embargo has constrained Iran's ability to freely move weapons to its proxies.

Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayyani expressed his country's total support for extending the arms embargo on Iran, accusing Tehran of continuing to supply arms to militias in Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq. 

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned last week of a return of UN sanctions on Iran if the Security Council fails to extend an embargo.

France, Britain and Germany, which all still support the nuclear deal, have also said they supported extending the embargo.

No date has been scheduled for a vote on the resolution and it is unlikely to pass, as veto-wielding China and Russia have already spoken out against extending the embargo.

Iran agreed with major world powers in 2015 to freeze its nuclear program in return for the lifting of punishing international sanctions.

But in 2018, US President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the agreement and reimposed sanctions, prompting Iran to roll back its own commitments.

Photo: IRNA

Virus-Hit Iran Says Masks Compulsory From Next Week

By Amir Havasi

Iran said Sunday it will make mask-wearing mandatory in certain areas and has allowed virus-hit provinces to reimpose restrictions, as novel coronavirus deaths mounted in the Middle East's worst-hit country.

The new steps were announced as Iran counted 144 new fatalities from the COVID-19 disease, its highest death toll for a single day in almost three months.

The Islamic republic has refrained from enforcing full lockdowns to stop the pandemic's spread, and the use of masks and protective equipment has been optional in most areas.

President Hassan Rouhani said Iran would have to live with the virus for the "long haul", as he announced the latest measures to combat it.

Mask-wearing would be "obligatory in covered spaces where there are gatherings", he said during a televised meeting of the country's anti-virus taskforce.

According to him, the measure would come into force as of next week, continue until July 22 and would be extended if necessary.

Rouhani said the health ministry had devised "a clear list" of the types of spaces and gatherings deemed high-risk, but he did not elaborate.

He also did not say what the penalty would be for those who fail to observe the measure.

According to deputy health minister Iraj Harirchi, services would not be provided to those without masks in areas such as government organizations and shopping malls.

But implementing the measure may be difficult, as according to Tehran's mayor, many do not wear masks in places like the capital's public transport network, where it is already mandatory.

"Fifty percent of metro passengers wear masks... and even fewer in buses," Mayor Pirouz Hanachi was quoted as saying by the semi-official ISNA news agency.

"We can't forcefully confront people without masks," he added.

'Red' Counties

Iran reported its first COVID-19 cases on February 19 and it has since struggled to contain the outbreak.

The health ministry on Sunday announced 144 virus deaths in the past 24 hours, its highest for a single day since April 5, raising the total to 10,508.

Spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari also raised total confirmed infections to 222,669, with 2,489 new cases during the same period.

Official figures have shown an upward trajectory in new confirmed cases since early May, when Iran hit a near two-month low in daily recorded infections.

"Considering the rising numbers, I plead with you to definitely use masks outside and in covered places," Lari said.

Iran closed schools, cancelled public events and banned movement between its 31 provinces in March, but the government progressively lifted restrictions from April to try to reopen its sanctions-hit economy.

The economy is starting to suffer under the pressures of the health crisis.

The country's currency, the rial, has hit new lows against the US dollar in recent days, mostly over border closures and a halt in non-oil exports, according to analysts.

The increasing virus caseload has seen some previously unscathed provinces classified as "red"—the highest level on Iran's color-coded risk scale—with authorities allowing them to reimpose restrictive measures if required.

According to Rouhani, the measure would also be extended to provinces with "red" counties.

"Any county that is red, its provincial (virus) committee can propose reimposing limitations for a week", which could be extended if needed, he said.

The government launched an "#I wear a mask" campaign on Saturday and pleaded with Iranians to observe guidelines aimed at curbing infections.

One Iranian is infected with COVID-19 every 33 seconds and one dies from the disease every 13 minutes, Harirchi said on Saturday.

Zanjan county in northwestern Iran has already reimposed restrictive measures for two weeks, its governor said in a televised interview.

It followed a "certain indifference from Zanjan residents and as the number of our (virus) deaths picked up again in recent weeks," said Alireza Asgari.

The limitations include closing wedding halls and a ban on funeral events held at mosques, as they can lead to large gatherings, he added.

Photo: IRNA