Tasnim – The World Health Organization’s representative in Iran, Christoph Hamelmann, hailed the Islamic Republic’s emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic, saying also that WHO is supporting the national efforts to turn the course of the disease.

"By delivering vital equipment and medicines? training health workers? and raising awareness in communities? WHO works with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education to serve the people of Iran in different provinces across the country” said Dr Christoph Hamelmann? the WHO Representative in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently has delivered 16 CT scan machines to strengthen Iran’s emergency response to COVID-19. The units? worth US$ 4 million? were procured by WHO through support from the Government of Japan and the State of Kuwait.

Since the start of the pandemic? WHO has supplied tons of personal protective equipment to health workers to help them provide safe care to communities across different parts of the country. The Organization’s multiple shipments of PCR test kits have also enabled the laboratory network to continue to perform hundreds of thousands of diagnostic tests to early detect infected individuals.

The daily death toll from COVID-19 in Iran stood at above 200 as of Sunday? as the total number of cases since the outbreak of the disease in the country surpassed 309?000.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday? Health Ministry Spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari put the death toll from COVID-19 in Iran at 17?190? saying the disease has taken the lives of 208 patients over the previous 24 hours.

She said the total number of people tested positive for COVID-19 in the country has risen to 309?437 following the detection of 2?685 new cases since yesterday.

Of the new cases detected since Saturday? 1?423 patients have been admitted to the hospital? she added. At least 268?102 patients have recovered from the coronavirus infection so far or have been discharged from hospitals across Iran? the spokeswoman said.

The number of people infected with COVID-19 across the world has surpassed 18.2 million and the death toll has exceeded 693?000.