President Lauds Iranians’ Cooperation, Says Religious Sites May Reopen

In an address to a meeting of the chairpersons of specialized committees of the Coronavirus Fight National Headquarters on Saturday, President Rouhani pointed to a report from the Ministry of Health and Medical Education about the achievement of “relatively satisfactory conditions” in the battle with the novel coronavirus, saying the close cooperation from the people and observance of the health protocols is a source of pride in the country.

“If the popular cooperation continues in parallel with the arrangements that have been made, we can be hopeful to some extent about cutting off the chain of outbreak of the disease,” the president noted.

He also emphasized that the Iranian health officials, religious authorities and clerics share a common concern about the health of people and creating an acceptable situation for the resumption of religious rituals, adding, “One can be hopeful that under circumstances that the indices of controlling the disease are improved, the country’s religious centers might reopen by defining conditions and instructions.”

He also noted that a large number of coronavirus cases in Iran have been treated with outpatient treatment services following an increase in the number of laboratories, lab testing with quick results, and the efforts made by the health personnel.

Under a coordinated management system covering all sectors and organizations, the officials have been deployed to the infected provinces and cities in a timely manner, have prevented a peak in the coronavirus outbreak, and have rapidly created stable situation by enforcing precautionary measures and restrictions, the president noted.

President Rouhani also explained that Iran is taking the path to controlling the disease, but cautioned that any reduction in the level of warnings and popular vigilance could result in another peak.

He once again called on people to stay home, not go out for unnecessary activities, and help the officials ensure a stable and reliable situation in containing COVID-19.

President Rouhani finally noted that the committees of the Coronavirus Fight National Headquarters have been assigned to evaluate the process of resumption of activities in every city and define the necessary health protocols by assessing the statistics for the infected cases, deaths and the outbreak indices.