Pres. Rouhani is incorrect about the curve reaching its zenith, as he said yesterday Monday and reported on this blog. Instead, the Health Ministry reports today Tuesday that just yesterday in Iran that 135 died, and now the total (reported by the Health Ministry) died of COVID-19 is 988 country-wide. On Saturday, 113 had died, also reported on this blog on Mar. 15. Rouhani’s assertions are false hope for the Iranian people, if they are listening. “Iran sees 135 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours,” KGET, NBC, March 17, 2020. See also “In new spike, Iran says 135 more people died of coronavirus,” Jon Gambrell AP, Boston Globe, March 17, 2020.
There is a real power struggle going on inside Iran right now. The government response to Coronavirus is the most recent manifestation of the Leader/IRGC military/hardliners against the President, an attempt by the Supreme Leader to keep control of the country and the Revolution. As this plays out, the President will not be able to stand against this. Last night in Mashhad (Imam Reza shrine) and Qom (Fatima Masumeh shrine)(usually open 24 hours per day; Shiites often kiss or touch holy symbols, and believe they can be cured of illness) scores of protesters stormed and entered, backed by some Shia clerics. They said things like, “We are here to say that Tehran is damn wrong to do that!” and “The health minister is damn wrong to do that, the president is damn wrong to do that!” See “Faithful in Iran storm closed shrines,” John Bowden, The Hill, March 17, 2020, and “Power Struggle Hampers Iran’s Coronavirus Response,” Farnaz Fassihi, New York Times, March 17, 2020.
Iran is not taking care of coronavirus, but continues to fester attacks against the U.S. “Iraqi officials say rockets strike Baghdad’s Green Zone,” AP, March 17, 2020.
“Where Is Iran’s Supreme Leader?,” Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, March 17, 2020.
“The Good Side Of The Coronavirus? IDF Says Iran’s “Hostile Enemy Activity” Toward Israel Has Waned,” The Yeshiva World, March 17, 2020.
“’Virus at Iran’s gates’: How Tehran failed to stop outbreak,” AP, March 17, 2020.
“Iran State TV Ejects Actor For Criticizing Coronavirus Control Policy,” Radio Farda, March 17, 2020.
“Iran forces recruit 9,000 Shia fighters in Syria,” Middle East Monitor, March 17, 2020.
Days of denials, a national independence/Revolution celebration, and an election (in which they needed everyone to come out and cast “support” ballots for the Regime) helped the coronavirus spread quickly in Iran. And the lifeline of airline flights to China. See “Explained Coronavirus in Iran: Why Did the Islamic Republic Get Hit So Hard, So Fast,” AP, Haaertz, March 17, 2020.
“Coronavirus pandemic ‘could kill millions’ in Iran,” Al Jazeera, March 17, 2020. A state television journalist, who is also a medical doctor, gave the warning on Tuesday citing a study by Tehran’s prestigious Sharif University of Technology, which offered three scenarios regarding the COVID-19 outbreak in Iran. Dr Afruz Eslami said if people begin to cooperate now, Iran will see 120,000 infections and 12,000 deaths before the outbreak is over. If they offer medium cooperation, there will be 300,000 cases and 110,000 deaths, she added. But if people fail to follow any guidance, it could collapse Iran’s already-strained medical system, Eslami said. If the “medical facilities are not sufficient, there will be four million cases, and 3.5 million people will die,” she said. Eslami did not elaborate what metrics the study used, but reporting it on Iran’s tightly controlled state TV represented a major change for a country whose officials had for days denied the severity of the crisis. At least 12 Iranian politicians and officials, both sitting and former, have now died of the illness, and 13 more have been infected and are either in quarantine or being treated.
“Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe freed temporarily from Iranian prison,” Patrick Wintour and Kate Proctor, Guardian, March 17, 2020.
This is one of the illicit dual-use channels Iran uses, and this one has at least been partially shut down. “Iranian national extradited to Texas after allegedly exporting ‘military sensitive items’ to Iran,” Justine Coleman, The Hill, March 17, 2020.
A funny video about eggplants falling from the sky in Tehran got five multi-media students arrested. “Iran students sorry for ‘raining aubergines’ videos,” BBC, March 17, 2020.