Death toll in Iran from coronavirus reaches 237

ISTANBUL

The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in Iran rose to 237 on Monday, the country's Health Ministry announced.

Authorities said 43 people died in the last 24 hours, while 595 new cases were found, pushing up the total number of confirmed cases to 7,161, spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said in a statement, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency.

At least 22,177 people are currently under medical care, while the number of discharged patients stands at 55,404, he said.

Besides, a total of 2,394 people have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the virus.

Turkey -- where there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus -- last month closed its land borders and suspended air travel to Iran.

Besides China, Italy, and South Korea, Iran is the worst-affected country since the outbreak of the disease last December.

As part of its efforts to contain the virus, Tehran has taken several measures, including the closure of all schools and institutions of higher education, calling off sports events, and banning government officials from leaving the country.

First detected in Wuhan, China in December, the virus, officially known as COVID-19, has spread to more than 90 countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The global death toll is now over 3,800, with around 110,000 confirmed cases.

As part of efforts to contain the outbreak, governments have closed borders and suspended land and air travel with the worst-hit countries.

After declaring the outbreak an international health emergency in January, last month the WHO updated the global risk level to “very high.”

* Writing by Zehra Nur Duz from Ankara