Radiofarda – Iran’s Supreme Leader made a claim in his latest speech that left many Iranians baffled, or rather terrorized, that the superstitious man ruling the country with unlimited powers may have lost his faculties. They justly fear that this may inflict even graver calamities on a nation suffering from many hardships, the latest of which is the coronavirus epidemic …

Radiofarda – The Spokeswoman of the U.S. Department of State Morgan Ortagus has strongly refuted Khamenei’s repetition of allegations that the United States created the Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) which she referred to as the “Wuhan Virus”. On March 23 in a speech broadcast live to the nation, Khamenei turned down the United States’ offer of help in dealing with the coronavirus …

Radiofarda – More than ten current and former Iranian athletes have fallen victim to novel coronavirus, according to data collected by Radio Farda. The local sports federations’ channels on Telegram, the most popular messaging app in Iran, have been crammed in recent days with posts commemorating prominent active and veteran athletes. Elham Sheikhi, Iranian female footballer, died after being infected …

Radiofarda – Iran’s former health minister Hassan Ghazizadeh Hashemi says he warned top officials about the dangers of novel coronavirus last year, but they did not heed his advice. He also lambasted the Islamic Republic authorities for their “mismanagement” of the deadly virus crisis in the country. “Since late December, I was warning about the spread of the coronavirus and …

Radiofarda – An outspoken member of Iran’s outgoing parliament has said that the country is in “transition from an Islamic Republic to an Islamic rule”, meaning a non-parliamentary government. Ali Motahari, who was barred from running for the recently-elected parliament, in an interview says, “A group within the state seriously strive to achieve Islamic governance, because people’s vote has only …

Al-Arabia – Iranian authorities went ahead with a funeral procession for a senior commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who recently died despite the coronavirus outbreak in the country, according to pictures published by Fars news agency. A funeral procession, attended by hundreds, was held for IRGC commander Hossein Asadollahi in the capital Tehran on Monday, images from …

Al-Monitor – Religious sites in Iran have never before been closed — even during the war with Iraq — yet with the spread of the novel coronavirus across the country, infecting tens of thousands and killing hundreds every week, things have changed. The decision by Iran’s Interior Ministry to close all the shrines in Qom, Mashhad and Tehran has stirred mixed feelings among Iranians, assuring …

Radiofarda – The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has once again rejected the United States offer to help Tehran control the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Khamenei called the U.S. government “the most vicious enemy of the Islamic Republic,” adding “They are lying, brazen, avaricious charlatans, and cruel, merciless terrorists.” Meanwhile, he reiterated that the United States has …

Radiofarda – Deputy Governor of Tehran Province has announced that all commercial establishments must stay closed from Sunday, March 22, except for chain supermarkets and pharmacies. Meanwhile, a health official in Tehran said there has been a five percent spike in visits of people infected with coronavirus to hospitals in Iran’s capital. Hamidreza Goudarzi, deputy governor was quoted by IRNA …

Radiofarda – Data gathered by Radio Farda from various national and local media in Iran quoting local authorities and Health Ministry officials indicate that the coronavirus (COVID-19) death toll in the country is at least 660 more than the officially announced tally on March 21. On Saturday in his daily announcement Dr. Kianoush Jahanpour, Spokesman of Iran’s Health Ministry, said …