Highest Rise in Covid-19 Fatalities Since April

Iran reported 133 overnight deaths caused by Covid-19 on Wednesday, the largest single-day increase since April 7, as the country prepared to tackle the resurgence in viral cases with targeted lockdown.
With a further 2,531 daily infections, the total number of confirmed cases was pushed to 212,500, Health Ministry Spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari was quoted as saying by ISNA. The death toll reached 10,000.
“The coronavirus taskforce on Saturday approved a proposal that allows provinces hit hardest by the pandemic to reimpose restrictions,” Alireza Raeisi, an official with the Health Ministry, said on Wednesday.
“Seven provinces have requested the reimposition of lockdown, the ministry agreed to it and public spaces will close in these regions. This is a temporary shutdown,” Raeisi said.
With quarantine authority delegated to provinces, several counties in West Azarbaijan, Kurdestan, Bushehr, Hormozgan, Kermanshah and Khuzestan will be placed under lockdown to stem the rapid spread of the contagion.
Raeisi acknowledged the negative impact of reopenings on the number of infections and deaths.

“We know we will wrestle with the coronavirus pandemic for at least one year. We could not have further postponed the reopenings,” he said.
The deputy health minister noted that nearly 40% of residents in the former epicenter of the disease, Qom, and the northern province of Gilan, a tourist hotspot, have contracted Covid-19.
“To develop herd immunity, more than 65% of the population should catch the virus,” he added.
According to Raeisi, roughly 15% have become infected in the province of Tehran, the number stands at 4-5% in some areas and 10-12% in others.
In response to the recent surge in infections, the Health Ministry plans to propose a scheme to the coronavirus taskforce next Sunday that if implemented, would mandate face coverings in public spaces.

Health Protocols Ignored

Raeisi said data reported by authorities show that compliance with the government’s Smart Distancing Initiative has dropped sharply from 70% to nearly 20% in less than two months.
The Health Ministry devised safety guidelines to be adhered to by businesses to control Covid-19 transmission rates while scaling back restrictions that hindered economic revival. Authorities have so far closed down 247,000 business places for violating the protocols.
Global coronavirus cases exceeded 9.38 million on Wednesday and fatalities reached 480,000. Despite warnings issued by World Health Organization, the world is slowly easing lockdown.
Iran administers over 20,000 diagnostic tests per day. The country has so far carried out 1.5 million tests since the outbreak was first detected in late February.
Nearly 173,000 have recovered from the respiratory illness and over 2,860 are in serious condition.