Iran people are suffering through yet another surge in the coronavirus pandemic their countrys worst yet and anger is growing at images of vaccinated Westerners without face masks on the internet or on TV while they remain unable to get the shots.
Since the start of the pandemic, Iran has recorded nearly 4 million COVID-19 cases and more than 91,000 deaths, the highest numbers across the Middle East.
Iranians are suffering through yet another surge in the coronavirus pandemic. Their country’s worst yet and anger is growing at images of vaccinated Westerners without face masks on the internet or on TV while they remain unable to get the shots.
Iran, like much of the world, remains far behind countries like the United States in vaccinating its public, with only 3 million of its more than 80 million people having received both vaccine doses.
But while some countries face poverty or other challenges in obtaining vaccines. Iran has brought some of the problems on itself.
Iran: What is next? A sixth wave?
What is next? A sixth wave? A seventh wave? When is it going to end?” asked Reza Ghasemi, a 27-year-old delivery man without a face mask, smoking a cigarette next to his motorbike on a recent day in Tehran.
“It is not clear when this situation will change to a better one.”
Since start of pandemic, Iran has recorded nearly 4 million COVID-19 cases and more than 91,000 deaths. The highest numbers across the Middle East.
The true count is believed to be much higher.
In April 2020, Iran’s parliament warned case number was “eight to 10 times” higher than reported figures, due to undercounting.
The supply of non-Western shots remains low, creating a black market offering Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech shots for as much as $1,350 in a country where the currency, the Iranian rial, is on the verge of collapse.
Meanwhile, U.S. sanctions imposed on Iran mean the cash-strapped government has limited funds to purchase vaccines abroad.
And even as the delta variant wreaks havoc, filling the country’s already overwhelmed hospitals. Many Iranians have given up on wearing masks and staying at home.
The need to earn a living trumps the luxury of social distancing.