Ebrahim Raisi is pushing forward with “smart quarantine” plan which entails removing COVID-19 restrictions across the country for all businesses as long as the people are “vaccinated” by one dose! Apart from the chilling fact that 1 dose of any vaccine is not enough for immunization, the vaccines used in Iran are mainly Sinopharm and COVIran Barekat which are not effective against Delta or other newer strains of the novel coronavirus. Raisi also “consulted” with specialized committees about reopening schools and universities from next month. Islamic Republic has begun “vaccinating” students 12-18 year old with unapproved and unproven Sinopharm! According to the Ministry of Health data, since February 9, total of 54,981,441 shots have been administered in Iran and only 16,272,799 (19.37% of population) have received 2 doses.
In the meantime, Mr. Health Minister visited Kerman, hometown of slain Qassem Soleimani. Eynollahi said his ministry is ready to invest in building a shrine for the head of IRGC Quds Force to become a “cultural base for all students around the country!” This is when healthcare workers have been protesting the government for their overdue wages and benefits for more than 19 months!
The Islamic Republic Health Minister walked back on his earlier announcement about importing Pfizer for the pregnant and possible booster shot for healthcare workers, and today anonymous sources inside the Ministry defend “not importing Pfizer” because “it is not worth the hassle!” It is notable, Khamenei banned US and UK made vaccines in January. Delta ravaged through Iran and thousands were killed because they were not vaccinated, causing people to blame Khamenei and the regime for the massacre. Therefore, Islamic Republic media began a misinformation campaign to deflect and shift the blame to the ousted government, while the new government miraculously was successful in bringing vaccines to the country!
The Ministry of Health Spokesperson claimed 14,078 tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours and 268 died of COVID-19, a significant increase in cases in addition to hospitalizations, as shown on the graphs. Since Arbaeen “pilgrims” are heading back home, the numbers are expected to increase as well and hospitals flooded. Professor of Epidemiology at Tehran University believes these numbers must be multiplied by 7 and Civil Registration Organization data show more than 288,000 have died of the disease since February 202 in Iran.
R0: 2.19
Total: 5,587,040 (+14,078)
Dead: 120,428 (+268)
Recovered: 5,031,692
Critical: 5,938 (-78)
Active Cases: 434,920 (-8,209)
Total Tests: 32,196,441
Cover: Pouria Pakizeh
