Iran - the Middle East country worst-hit by the epidemic -said earlier on Saturday that 158 more coronavirus patients had died in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 3,452. "Dr Harirchi cautioned about a probable return of coronavirus in case of negligence and said social distancing measures were absolutely necessary," said the TV. Officials initially urged people to cancel such plans due to the coronavirus outbreak, and then imposed inter-city travel bans on March 25. CRITICISM OF US SANCTIONSIn a rare comment in Britain's Guardian newspaper, Tehran Mayor Pirouz Hanachi said US sanctions were crippling Iran's fight against the coronavirus. However, broader US sanctions deter many US and global firms from humanitarian trade with Iran.

Source: bd News24 April 04, 2020 17:15 UTC