Ebrahim Raisi ordered the Interior Minister to “facilitate easy return of Arbaeen pilgrims from Iraq.” Following the order, Roads and Urban Development Minister announced the agreement in the government not to perform PCR test for the returning passengers. Ghasemi said: “It’s been agreed to do it (detect COVID-19 cases) with eye (observation)!” Health experts warn the gatherings will cause the sixth wave of coronavirus to happen sooner in Iran.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Tehran Corona Combating Committee admits there has been an increase in cases and hospitalizations in the past few days which could be a red flag and “must be observed closely.” Dr. Zali requested “active case finding” to be accelerated across the country. However, based on the official data, daily PCR testing has been on a decline for months now, as seen on the graphs. Fars is on the same boat, with a spike in outpatient cases. Head of Shiraz Medical University said the situation in the province is “extremely fragile.” Hormozgan reports rising number of cases in “well-vaccinated Kish Island” and officials blame it on the people, classic move by the Islamic Republic. Mazandaran “representative” at Islamic Republic “parliament” asked people not to travel to the province since the COVID-19 situation is “extremely fragile!” Shariati said the hospitalization is on the rise again. Zanjan Medical University official reiterates the fragile circumstances across the country and warns “there’s a long way ahead to control the virus.”
On the other hand, vaccination with ineffective and unverified vaccines continues. Ministry of Health claims total of 50,958,982 shots have been administered across Iran since February 9 and only 15,467,255 (18.41% of population) are fully vaccinated. Numerous breakthrough and fatal cases have been reported. The Spokesperson also claimed 288 died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours and 13,792 tested positive for the novel coronavirus. According to Civil Registration Organization data, more than 284,000 have died of the disease since February 2020. Professor Holakoui of Tehran University believes the real numbers are 7 times higher than the daily reports.
R0: 2.25
Total: 5,533,520 (+13,792)
Dead: 119,360 (+288)
Recovered: 4,944,087
Critical: 6,320 (-91)
Active Cases: 470,073 (-9,605)
Total Tests: 31,756,999
Cover: Ali Haddadi-Asl
