Epidemic spreads in Iran as South Korea vows relief fund
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The coronavirus epidemic spread through Iran鈥檚 parliament, South Korea prepared to pump billions into relief efforts, and death toll in the United States continued to rise yesterday as the epidemic firmed its hold around the globe.
Mushrooming outbreaks in the Middle East, Europe and South Korea contrasted with optimism in China, where thousands of recovered patients were going home.
鈥淲e are in unchartered territory,鈥 World Health Organization leader Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
Iran鈥檚 supreme leader put the Islamic Republic on war footing by ordering its armed forces to assist health officials in combating the outbreak, which authorities say has killed 77 people 鈥 the deadliest outbreak outside China. The virus has killed a confidant of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran鈥檚 former ambassador to the Vatican, as well as a recently elected member of parliament.
State television quoted a lawmaker saying 23 members of parliament were infected.
Iran鈥檚 judiciary chief, Ebrahim Raisi, said some people were stockpiling medical supplies for profit, and urged prosecutors to show no mercy. 鈥淗oarding sanitizing items is playing with people鈥檚 lives.鈥
South Korea saw its largest daily increase in new cases yesterday, with 851 new infections reported, largely in and around Daegu. In all, 5,186 have tested positive for the virus.
In the capital of Seoul, drive-through virus testing centers began operating, with workers dressed head-to-toe in white protective suits leaning into cars with mouth swabs, a move meant to limit contact with possible carriers of the illness. Troops were also dispatched across the city to spray streets and alleys with disinfectants.
The country鈥檚 death toll rose to 31 and President Moon Jae-in, calling it 鈥渁 grave situation,鈥 said his government would push to inject 30 trillion won (US$25 billion) to fund clinics, aid for small businesses and other measures. It requires parliamentary approval.
鈥淭he entire country has entered a war against an infectious disease,鈥 he said.
Worldwide, more than 90,000 people have been sickened and 3,100 have died from the virus. A constantly expanding list of at least 70 countries have been affected, with Ukraine the latest to report a first case.
In Italy, the count of infected people continued rising to 2,036, and officials said it could take up to two weeks to know whether measures, including quarantines in 11 northern towns, were working.
The United States鈥 count of cases surpassed 100 in at least 11 states. There have been six deaths in Washington state.
On Capitol Hill, aides said talks were nearing completion on an emergency funding bill to fund vaccine development and offer disaster loans to businesses hurt by the crisis.
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