Iran Warns of 'Rising Trend' as Virus Cases Top 100,000

Firefighters disinfect a street against the new coronavirus, in western Tehran, Iran, March 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Firefighters disinfect a street against the new coronavirus, in western Tehran, Iran, March 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
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Iran Warns of 'Rising Trend' as Virus Cases Top 100,000

Firefighters disinfect a street against the new coronavirus, in western Tehran, Iran, March 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Firefighters disinfect a street against the new coronavirus, in western Tehran, Iran, March 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran warned on Wednesday of a "rising trend" this week in the COVID-19 outbreak as it said 1,680 new infections took its overall caseload beyond the 100,000 mark.

Iran has struggled to contain the Middle East's deadliest coronavirus outbreak since announcing its first cases in mid-February.

Concerns were raised last month about the threat of a "second wave" of the virus in a report by parliament that criticized the government's slow response.

"We are witnessing a rising trend in the past three or four days, which is significant," health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour told a televised news conference.

The rise was "based on our behavior, especially in the past two weeks, considering that a part of society has apparently had a change of attitude," he added.

The newly reported infections brought the country's overall number of confirmed cases to 101,650.

On Saturday, Iran's official tally of daily infections hit its lowest level since March 10, but cases have picked up again since then.

Jahanpour said the spike in cases could be due to an increase in movement across cities and unnecessary travel.

Iran has allowed a phased return to work to revitalize its economy since April 11 and reopened mosques in parts of the country deemed to be at low risk.

Jahanpour also said the death toll rose by 78 in the past 24 hours to 6,418.

Out of those hospitalized, 81,587 had recovered and were discharged while 2,735 were in critical condition.

A report published by parliament in mid-April said the real death toll could be as much as 80 percent higher than what the government announced.

It said the officially announced figures were based only on "patients that are hospitalized with severe symptoms".

It also said a "second wave" of the virus may come next winter, possibly without a break due to containment measures taking too long.



Spain Deploys 7,500 Troops to Flood Zone Where Anger Rises at Slow Help

 A woman cleans thick mud, in the aftermath of floods caused by heavy rains, in Sedavi, near Valencia, Spain, November 3, 2024. (Reuters)
A woman cleans thick mud, in the aftermath of floods caused by heavy rains, in Sedavi, near Valencia, Spain, November 3, 2024. (Reuters)
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Spain Deploys 7,500 Troops to Flood Zone Where Anger Rises at Slow Help

 A woman cleans thick mud, in the aftermath of floods caused by heavy rains, in Sedavi, near Valencia, Spain, November 3, 2024. (Reuters)
A woman cleans thick mud, in the aftermath of floods caused by heavy rains, in Sedavi, near Valencia, Spain, November 3, 2024. (Reuters)

Spain is deploying 7,500 troops to its eastern region hit by devastating floods, the government said on Monday in the face of rising discontent over the response to the catastrophe that has killed at least 217 people.

The army sent about 5,000 soldiers over the weekend to help distribute food and water, clean up streets and protect shops and properties from looters. A further 2,500 would join them, Defense Minister Margarita Robles told state-owned radio RNE.

A warship carrying 104 marine infantry soldiers as well as trucks with food and water was approaching Valencia port even as a strong hailstorm pummeled Barcelona some 300 km (186 miles) to the north.

Rescue teams on Monday were searching for bodies in underground garages including a 5,000-car park at Bonaire shopping mall near Valencia airport as well as river mouths where currents may have deposited bodies.

Fatalities from Spain's worst flash floods in modern history edged higher to 217 on Sunday - almost all of them in the Valencia region and more than 60 in the suburb of Paiporta.

Local residents' anger was focused on late alerts from authorities about the dangers of flooding and a perceived delayed response by emergency services.

On Sunday, some residents in Paiporta slung mud at Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and King Felipe and his wife Queen Letizia, chanting: "murderers, murderers!"

Transport Minister Oscar Puente said on Sunday the death toll had stabilized because all victims on the surface had been identified.

The torrential rains on Tuesday and Wednesday caused rivers to swell, engulfing streets and the ground floors of buildings, and sweeping away cars and pieces of masonry in tides of mud.

It was the worst flood-related disaster in Europe in five decades

Even though rainfalls have continued during the rest of the week, there has been no more major flooding in the area. The weather agency issued a warning on Monday morning for Barcelona as hailstorm and heavy rains hit Spain's second largest city.

Some of Sunday's protesters wore clothing with the symbols of far-right organizations that often stage protests against the leftist government. Robles said extremist groups were taking advantage of the situation for political gains.