Covid-19 Cases Cross 390,000

Over 390,000 Iranians have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes Covid-19, in the nearly seven months since the infectious disease was first spotted in the Middle Eastern country.
Authorities registered 2,302 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, pushing the national total to 391,112, Health Ministry’s Spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari was quoted as saying by ISNA.
At least 132 died from the contagion within a 24-hour period, she added, which took the overall death toll to 22,524.
Lari said Iran has so far administered 3.4 million diagnostic tests to help identify infected individuals.
She added, “Over 337,000 recovered from the disease and were discharged from the hospital, while 3,713 are severely ill.”
Health Minister Saeed Namaki on Tuesday wrote to Director General of World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, calling for the world to galvanize into action against unilateral US sanctions.
“It is time for the world to call for the lifting of all sanctions so they do not compromise the health of individuals. I am asking you to take the necessary measures to end illegal and unilateral US sanctions, which have caused suffering and and death among the people of Iran and other countries,” he added.
Pointing to Iran’s fight with both the coronavirus pandemic and the US sanctions, Namaki said, “In this emergency situation, the legal expectation from WHO, the United Nations and other international organizations is to assure that medicine and humanitarian goods are available to Iranians.”
The minister had made a similar plea to the international organization in late April.