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03/10/2020

Coronavirus in Iran: globalist weapon or survival of the fittest?

Coronavirus in Iran: globalist weapon or survival of the fittest?
United World International

Iran declares ‘Islamic Jihad’ against a new enemy – coronavirus.

BACKGROUND

At the end of December 2019, China reported an outbreak of pneumonia caused by a new coronavirus in Wuhan (Hubei Province). The World Health Organization (WHO) recognized it as an epidemic following a number outbreaks and declared an emergency of international proportions. At first, the disease was called 2019-nCoV; on February 11, 2020, it was named the new coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-2019).

The first wake-up calls for Iran came from social networks when the coronavirus began to spread rapidly in China: parents and relatives of Iranian students sounded the alarm and called the Iranian embassy in Beijing and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help to Iranian citizens who were quarantined in Wuhan. The Iranian Foreign Ministry later evacuated its citizens from China in early February.

Despite the WHO’s threats about the speed and scale of the spread of the new virus, Iran did not take urgent and preventive steps at the airports and across the country. Moreover, the Iranian airline company ‘Mahan Air’ continued to regularly operate flights to the virus-infected China with humanitarian aid:

In addition, in February, a number of public events such as Fajr Week alongside cultural performances including the Fajr International Film Festival were held in Iran with the active participation of a huge number of foreign guests and tourists. On February 11, Iranians celebrated the 41st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. That day also included mass rallies on the occasion of the 40-day mourning of General Qassem Soleimani. Shortly after that, the week of agitation of candidates for the Islamic Advisory Council in the Iranian parliament began. The election race for candidates demanded meetings with large numbers of voters.

Some Western analysts and mainstream media said that Iran intentionally kept silent about the threat of the coronavirus as it spread throughout the country in order to avoid panic, as they wanted voters to come out for the parliamentary elections.

Nevertheless, in early February, Iranian doctors claimed that there was not a single case of infection of COVID-2019 among foreign tourists in Iran, and that there were only two questionable cases:

HOW DID THE VIRUS SPREAD TO IRAN?

The Iranian Ministry of Health reported the first cases of coronavirus in the country only on February 19 when infected people were detected in the Qom province.

However, the first Coronavirus carrier has yet to be found. In that regard, there are two versions about how the disease may have spread to Iran. Given that there are quite a lot of Chinese citizens in Iran, COVID-2019 carriers may have been Chinese nationals working on industrial projects in the Qom province. According to the second version, an Iranian businessmen from Qom who had recently traveled to China was patient-zero.

The information directly affected the turnout in parliamentary elections in Iran.

WHY DID COVID-2019 SPREAD SO QUICKLY IN IRAN?

It is worth noting that according to Iranian beliefs and traditions, a proper greeting is not limited to shaking hands, but is accompanied by kissing cheeks. This form of greeting is popular among Iranian women and men, and in particular, among politicians.

In addition to the lack of a quick response of Iranian sanitary services and authorities to the first signals of the coronavirus spread and the lack of mass informing citizens about the seriousness of the problem throughout the country, the special form of Iranian greeting was another factor that may have helped to the rapid infection of coronavirus among Iranians.

Qom is a city of Shiite Muslim pilgrims, where thousands of sick people come to the temple to receive healing by touching the shrine of the Shiite saint Fatima Masumeh. For many Shiites, this is a special sacred ritual. According to information established by Chinese doctors, it is possible for a person to get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or eyes – but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.

Iran has the most advanced medicinal services and professional doctors in the Middle East and West Asia. However, Iran, unlike European countries or Russia, does not have experience in combating an epidemic or pandemic. In Iran, there is no special medical calendar for free vaccination of all citizens against influenza and ARVI. Perhaps this is a fatal flaw for Iranian health care, as timely vaccination around the world has proven efficient against influenza and ARVI.

In Iran, vaccination is carried out strictly on the recommendation of a doctor for high-risk patient groups (such as the elderly, children, patients with cardiovascular diseases, those with breathing problems and patients with weak immune systems). Iran does not have its own vaccines against influenza and ARVI, all vaccines on the recommendation of the WHO are imported from Europe and even Russia. However, US sanctions have highly limited Iran’s ability to buy and import these medicines.

That’s why Iranian doctors during the first hours of the coronavirus outbreak were not ready and unaware of patients who were sent to hospitals with symptoms of the virus.

One of the most poignant cases occurred when the Iranian deputy minister of health, Iraj Harirchi, held a large press conference which was attended by the Iranian parliamentarians and representatives of the government and journalists. He read out a report on the situation with the coronavirus. During the conference, the minister seemed quite unhealthy and coughed.

The next day he was hospitalized and he tested positive for a coronavirus. The deputy minister announced his condition in a video-message on social media.

After this incident, Iranian authorities took the threat of the coronavirus outbreak more seriously, as a number of important politicians and religious figures were infected, one of whom died as a result.

The Vice-Speaker of the Iranian parliament Abdolreza Mesri said that 23 deputies of the Iranian parliament tested positive for coronavirus.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that diseases caused by the new coronavirus have been spread absolutely to all provinces of the country.

According to the Iranian Ministry of Health, on March 10, Tehran (2114 total confirmed case of infections) leads in the number of infected provinces, followed by Qom (751), Mazenderan (886), Gilan (524) and Isfahan (618).

Despite the relatively high mortality rate in Iran compared with other countries infected with coronavirus, one resonant positive case occurred in the Islamic Republic. A healthy baby was born from a woman infected with COVID-2019.

However, Iranian doctors and even Red Crescent employees have been in a risk patient group.

The head of Iran’s emergency medical services, Pirhossein Kolivand, has also conducted coronavirus.

Another person who was infected with COVID-2019 is Mujtaba Akbari, the head of the Red Crescent Society division in the Mazandaran province

 

Посмотреть эту публикацию в Instagram

 

Публикация от ایران اینترنشنال (@iranintltv)

IS THE USA RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CORONAVIRUS EPIDEMIC IN IRAN?

 

US President Donald Trump and his policy of sanctions against Iran are partly responsible for spread of the coronavirus in Iran. This statement was made by the adviser to the Iranian president, Hesameddin Ashna.

“Trump’s economic sanctions, and Europe’s complicity, left Iran’s public health infrastructure underprepared to deal with coronavirus in a timely way. Trump’s policies are partly responsible for shaping the spread of this virus, and the lives lost in the process”, Hesameddin Ashena wrote on Twitter.

According to Ashena, the responsibility for the outbreak and the death of Iranian citizens from COVID-19 “partly lies with Trump’s policy.”

The Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, also laid blame on the United States, calling US sanctions medical terrorism:

The position of the Iranian authorities is quite understandable. As a result of the sanctions, Iran has been deprived of the opportunity to buy a number of vital medicines from Europe, the US and other countries. Iran has also had a lot of problems receiving humanitarian aid for victims of the earthquakes in Kermanshah and the floods in the Sistan province.

Although the US has clearly been involved in the spread of coronavirus in a secondary way, there is also a more conspiratorial point of view which suggests direct involvement. The United States has gone through great pains to weaken its main opponents, China and Iran, which is why Iranian military officials believe that coronavirus was created as a biological weapon and intentionally spread to these countries.

It is still very difficult to refute or confirm this accusation, but there are certainly enough reasons for US globalist structures to take such serious measures in their attacks on the economies of Iran and China.

GLOBAL REACTION

Iran is the third country in the world where the coronavirus situation has begun to look like an epidemic. In a number of neighboring countries, Iranian citizens or those who visited Iran have tested positive for coronavirus.

As a result, a number of neighboring countries (Turkey, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan, India and Afghanistan) have closed their borders with Iran, and many other states have canceled flights to and from Iran.

Russia, Armenia and Iraq imposed a ban on issuing visas and invitations to Iranian citizens, as well as a ban on entry into their countries for all Iranians and foreigners from Iran.

China was the first country to come forward and offer help to the embattled nation.

The Chinese embassy in conjunction with Chinese companies came together to gift Iran 5,000 coronavirus test kits. China’s Ambassador to Iran, Chang Hua, wrote on his Twitter account that “efforts will continue.”

Iran is facing serious problems in terms of distributing the necessary medical supplies to stop the spread of coronavirus.

The WHO also responded to Zarif’s call to provide to help Iran in the fighting against coronavirus:

On March 2, the WHO sent an aircraft carrying tons of medical supplies and test kits along with a medical team to Iran in order to help combat the novel coronavirus.

The supplies, worth over $300,000, consisted of gloves, surgical masks and respirators.

Russia also came forward to help Iran in the fighting against coronavirus, sending surgical masks, gowns and respirators.

Iran’s neighbor Pakistan made efforts to help deal with the trade and food problem in Iran, opening its borders for food trucks:

US Senator Elizabeth Warren demanded that the State Department and Treasury Department investigate lifting sanctions on medical supplies to Iran:

US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook also offered to  send medicines through a Swiss channel.

However, the Iranian authorities did not accept this proposal:

WHAT HAS IRAN DONE TO COMBAT THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS?

Iran has finally taken radical preventive steps to combat the coronavirus. The authorities have even quarantined some cities. Mass disinfection of public transport and medical facilities has begun, and a number of sport events, including football qualifying matches, have been canceled. Kindergartens, schools and universities, even mosques in several cities were quarantined until the “new year” (Nowruz) which begins in Iran on March 21. Citizens are strongly advised not to travel to the provinces.

The Plan and Budget Organization of Iran has allocated 5.5 trillion rials (nearly $170 million) more to the Ministry of Health in order to counter COVID-19.

At airports, passenger checks and sanitary measures have been strengthened.

Iran’s Supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called on all Iranians to mobilize into a united front and declare Islamic jihad against the coronavirus.

In practice, Ayatollah Khamenei instructed Iranian citizens to comply with instructions from the WHO and to mobilize forces against the spread of the virus.

In addition, the IRGC has gotten involved with the fight against coronavirus.

Iranian doctors and nurses, who are in a special risk patient group, have been actively trying to prop up morale on social media networks in order to stop panic among the population. They have been posting various funny videos including dances in their medical gear.

DAMAGE FROM THE CORONAVIRUS

The virus has become a ticking time-bomb for Iran. US economic sanctions did damage over time, but coronavirus has acted swiftly and without remorse. In addition to the human losses, all sectors of the Iranian economy have suffered from the coronavirus.

The Coronavirus’ effect on world politics and economy

For instance, the tourism industry and international passenger airlines have been heavily hit.

Both the agricultural and food sectors of the Iranian economy have suffered.  Coronavirus has deeply affected the export of food products, as well as the import of Indian rice into Iran.

Borders are closed and there are no deliveries with major Iranian trading partners:

Cases of theft and hiding of vital products and medical supplies have become more frequent.

In fact, Iran’s trade with a number of countries is now paralyzed. Damage will be measured in the millions and maybe billions of dollars.

Iran, due to the lack of the necessary number of medical personnel and the interruption or lack of food supplies in prisons, has taken extreme measures: Iranian officials released about 70,000 prisoners in the face of the threat of coronavirus.

 

FORECAST

  • If international organizations, the WHO in particular, alongside individual countries, do not intervene by sending necessary medicine supplies and specialists to Iran, the coronavirus outbreak in this country will turn into a pandemic. This may be followed by a humanitarian catastrophe, in particular if globalist structures do not revise their sanctions policy, as a result of which Iran has limited access to advanced medicines and technologies needed to fight COVID-2019.
  • According to statistics, coronavirus mortality rates in Iran are higher than in China or Italy. It’s clear that Iran needs help not only with medicines, but with international scientific research experience of experts and in the investigation of the causes and growth factors of COVID-2019 spreading, analyzing and correcting of the methodology for treating patients with coronavirus in Iran.
  • In addition, under adverse economic conditions including high inflation and the economic blockade, the country is facing unemployment, poverty and hunger. Accordingly, the general mortality among the Iranian population is likely to increase as well.
United World International

Independent analytical center where political scientists and experts in international relations from various countries exchange their opinions and views.

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