Spread of Coronavirus May Be Terrorist Act: Leader’s Envoy
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The representative of Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Syria said there is a possibility that the spread of the new coronavirus, known as COVID-19, may be part of a terrorist act.
"The reason behind some incidents is the human factor that causes major catastrophes, whose examples are numerous," Ayatollah Seyed Abolfazl Tabatabaei said, addressing a congregation of worshippers in Damascus on Friday.
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the terrorist acts of Daesh (ISIS) and the Zionist regime of Israel are examples of such catastrophes, he added.
The cleric further pointed to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei's recent letter to Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri and said in the letter, the Leader highlighted the possibility of a biological attack launched by spreading the virus and instructed the top general to stage a war game in this regard.
Spokesman for the Iranian Health Ministry said on Friday that since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country, 3,529 patients have completely recovered from the infectious disease.
Kianoush Jahanpour said that since Thursday, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country has increased by 1,289, reaching 11,364.
Over the past 24 hours, 85 patients have lost their lives, the spokesman said, adding that the death toll from the new coronavirus epidemic in the country has risen to 514.
Fortunately, so far 3,529 patients infected with the COVID-19 have recovered and have been discharged from hospitals, he said.
Medical staffs in all 31 provinces of Iran have been working tirelessly over the past weeks to contain the novel coronavirus.
First detected in Wuhan city in central China in December, the virus has spread to more than 120 countries.
More than 140,000 have been infected globally, according to the WHO. Of those, over 68,000 have recovered.