New Covid-19 wave to show face in Iran after New Year holidays: Health official

An Iranian Health Ministry official says the eighth wave of infections with new sub-variants of the coronavirus has already started in the country, and it is expected to show face after 2023 New Year holidays.

Shahnam Arshi, who heads the Infectious Diseases Management Department of the Health Ministry, told Entekhab that the new wave of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has already entered the country with the detection of the new sub-strains of the Omicron variant.

With a rise in the number of trips abroad and back home, the new wave will likely show face after New Year holidays, he explained.

The official said the new wave of infections is expected to be less severe than the previous ones, but he warned that the pandemic is still not over across the world and people need to adhere to the health protocols against the highly infectious disease.

According to the latest updates to the color-coded coronavirus tracking map, released by the Health Ministry on Friday, 382 Iranian cities are still categorized as “blue,” where there’s no risk of infection, but the number of “yellow” and “orange” zones are on the rise.

Currently, 62 cities are classified as “yellow” and 4 cities as “orange.” There is still no “red” areas on the map.

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