Speaking at a meeting of the National Task Force for Fighting Coronavirus on Saturday, Rouhani said the COVID-19 pandemic will remain for a long time, warning that people still need to follow health protocols.
The president underlined that people will have to observe the health protocols and abide by strict restrictions during the upcoming Nowruz holidays at the beginning of spring.
Stressing the need to mobilize efforts to prevent the fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Iran, the president said it is necessary to step up control and monitoring and increase the number of tests for early detection of infection.
The Health Ministry has formulated plans to restrict travel during the Nowruz holidays, which will begin on March 21. People have been advised to stay home and exercise caution to help the healthcare system overcome the pandemic.
The number of coronavirus infections has witnessed a jump in the past days.
According to Iran’s Health Ministry, the number of total coronavirus cases in the country has reached 1,673,470 so far with the death toll standing at 60,512.
Iran has developed two homegrown coronavirus vaccines that are undergoing clinical trials.
Officials say Tehran will receive around 16 million doses of vaccines through the World Health Organization's COVAX program, import more than 25 million doses from abroad, and produce 25 million other doses inside the country.
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