Iran's Rouhani says a wedding party contributed to new surge in COVID-19 cases

Iranian Leader Hassan Rouhani, on June 5, said that a wedding in Iran had contributed to a new surge in COVID-19 cases in the country. However, he added that country had no other choice than reopening. The Islamic republic started easing out restrictions in late April as coronavirus cases dropped, however, the middle eastern country saw a sharp rise in recent weeks.  Earlier this week, Iran reported 3,574 cases, marking the highest since the outbreak first began in February.

"At one location, we witnessed a peak in this epidemic, the source of which was a wedding that caused problems for the people, health workers and losses to the economy ad the country’s health system, Rouhani said on state television without specifying the venue or date of the wedding.

Health officials in Iran have reportedly warned of a second wave of the outbreak, but many claims a reason for the surge in new cases could be wider testing. One official reportedly asserted that about 70% of the new cases in Tehran were among those who had travelled outside the capital in the region. According to the latest tally by John Hopkins University, Iran has reported 1,69,425 cases till now

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Meanwhile, Iran which is already reeling under heavy international sanctions has no choice but to reopen. Last month, Iran reopened major Shiite shrines across the country. After being closed nearly two months ago due to the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the Imam Reza shrine located in northeast Iran and Fatima shrine and Jamkaran mosque which is located in the holy city of Qom was also reopened. As per reports, the religious sites are allowed to open an hour after dawn and remain open until an hour before dusk.

Health officials' warning

However, the country's health minister Saeed Namaki, on June 1, reportedly said that the country could face a second, stringer wave of deadly coronavirus infections.  With an increase in testing and the number of infections surging, Namaki reportedly said that at any moment the outbreak may come back stronger than before. He added that if citizens fail to respect the health protocols then the country must prepare for the ‘worst situation’. 

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(Image Credits: AP)