Why Iran’s coronavirus outbreak is dangerous for the Middle East | Financial Times:
Iran has recorded the highest number of coronavirus deaths outside of China and is struggling to contain the disease. This is raising fears that the outbreak will spread into neighbouring countries where fragile health systems and weak government control would make fighting the deadly illness even more difficult.
How many cases are there?
At least 139 people in Iran have tested positive for coronavirus so far, including the country’s deputy health minister who was filmed sweating heavily and repeatedly wiping his face at a coronavirus press conference on Monday. Of those cases, 19 people have died in the past week, according to official figures.
The first cases were traced to the holy city of Qom, 140km south of Tehran and home to 1.2m people. Qom receives business travellers and Islamic pilgrims from all over the globe and has the highest number of Shia Muslim clerical students in the world. A few hundred of those students are believed to be Chinese nationals. But Iranian authorities are yet to identify the patient that first brought the virus to Iran.
Iran has recorded the highest number of coronavirus deaths outside of China and is struggling to contain the disease. This is raising fears that the outbreak will spread into neighbouring countries where fragile health systems and weak government control would make fighting the deadly illness even more difficult.
How many cases are there?
At least 139 people in Iran have tested positive for coronavirus so far, including the country’s deputy health minister who was filmed sweating heavily and repeatedly wiping his face at a coronavirus press conference on Monday. Of those cases, 19 people have died in the past week, according to official figures.
The first cases were traced to the holy city of Qom, 140km south of Tehran and home to 1.2m people. Qom receives business travellers and Islamic pilgrims from all over the globe and has the highest number of Shia Muslim clerical students in the world. A few hundred of those students are believed to be Chinese nationals. But Iranian authorities are yet to identify the patient that first brought the virus to Iran.
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