'Recipe for a massive viral outbreak': Iran emerges as a worldwide coronavirus threat

NEW YORK - Religious pilgrims, migrant workers, businessmen, soldiers and clerics all flow constantly across Iran's frontiers, often crossing into countries with few border controls, weak and ineffective governments and fragile health systems.

"It is a recipe for a massive viral outbreak," said Peter Piot, director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the former founding executive director of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS. Iran is in many ways a case study in the risks of the disease spreading. The country reported its first case of the coronavirus less than a week ago, in Qom. On Monday health officials reported that four people had died there in the last day, bringing the total to 12. At least 61 others had been infected in Iran, the officials said, with new cases being reported in Isfahan, Hamedan and other cities, as well as in Qom.

Health Ministry officials vehemently disputed his claims."I will resign if the numbers are even half or a quarter of this," said Ahmad Harirchi, adviser to the health minister. In an interview with BBC Persian from Teheran, Dr Babak Gharaye Moghadam urged citizens to"please, please listen" to the advice of health officials and not to turn to social media feeds on their cellphones for guidance.

Health officials declared a state of emergency in Herat. The government on Sunday had already suspended all air and ground travel to and from Iran. The son of a professor at a university in Herat, who returned three days ago from Iran, called a reporter for The New York Times on Monday asking what the procedure for quarantine was.

"Many hospitals in Saudi Arabia have improved but some could still do better at prevention," said Dr. David L. Heymann, former chairman of Britain's Health Protection Agency.

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Iran news agency: Death toll from new virus in Qom is at 50A staggering 50 people have died in the Iranian city of Qom from the new coronavirus this month, Iran's semiofficial ILNA news agency reported on Monday. The new death toll is significantly higher than the latest number of confirmed cases of infections that Iranian officials had reported just a
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

8 dead in Turkey after earthquake hits Iran border areaISTANBUL: Eight people died and others were stuck under collapsed buildings in southeastern Turkey on Sunday (Feb 23) after a magnitude-5.7 ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Iran says in total 43 infected with coronavirus, 8 dead: OfficialIran confirmed 15 new cases of the new coronavirus, Health Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said on state TV on Sunday, adding that the death ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Iran accuses foreign media of using virus to 'discourage' votersSupreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday accused foreign media of trying to use a deadly outbreak of coronavirus in Iran to 'discourage' people from voting in a general election. 'This negative propaganda began a few months ago and grew larger approaching the election and in the
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

Jordan bars travellers from China, Iran, South Korea over COVID-19AMMAN: Jordan said on Sunday (Feb 23) it will bar entry to citizens of China, Iran and South Korea and other foreigners travelling from those ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Iran announces low poll turnout, blames COVID-19 'propaganda'DUBAI: Iran on Sunday (Feb 23) announced a 42 per cent turnout in its parliamentary election, the lowest rate since the 1979 Islamic revolution, ... The CCP/PLA created this virus in the Level 4 lab in Wuhan WuhanBioWeapon Iran government back with their bull again. I legit think the Iranian government themselves are more dangerous and lethal than the Corona virus.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »