Coronavirus Exposes Iran

On [February 24^th], an Iranian lawmaker in the Iranian city of Qom reported that at least 50 people who reside in the city have died from the coronavirus, alternatively referred to as COVID-19. Ahmad Amiriabadi Farahani made the shocking revelation to media outlets and his claim was carried by Iran’s semiofficial ILNA news agency.

The city of Qom is considered to be a holy city by some Iranians and others who practice Shia Islam. That is significant because the city attracts devout Shia pilgrims and tourists, making it a transit point for spreading the virus to other regions. Indeed, despite quarantining efforts, the virus has already spread to other Iranian cities, and infected travelers coming from Iran have already been reported in Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Oman and Bahrain.

Farahani’s claim was immediately contradicted by Iran’s Deputy Health Minister, Iraj Harirchi, who at a press conference claimed that only 12 people died and 47 were infected. He further stated that he would resign if Amiriabadi’s claim was substantiated.

In an ironic twist, the following day, Iran’s health ministry announced that Harirchi was infected and under quarantine. This after he was seen coughing on those adjacent to him during the previous day’s press conference. The person entrusted with thwarting the spread of the COVID-19 virus was now its victim, an ominous development that does not inspire confidence. The ministry has since revised its statistics, noting that deaths from infections had climbed to 19 while 139 people were infected across Iran.

Iran has a long record of propagating fiction and its government officials are notorious dissemblers. However, even if we are to believe the health ministry’s statistics, and disregard Farahani’s assertions, it is still alarming for three reasons. First, it would still mean that the coronavirus death toll in Iran is the largest outside China. Second, it’s reasonable to assume that Iran is now ground zero for the coronavirus in the Mideast. Third, the mortality rate in Iran, as reported by Iranian health officials, is significantly higher than anywhere else in the world….a staggering 13.6 percent or 4.5 times higher than the global average.

There are two possible explanations for the confounding discrepancy in global versus Iranian mortality statistics. The first and most likely explanation is that the Iranians are lying [and] that the rate of those infected with the virus is much higher than the government is willing to acknowledge. The second possibility is that Iran’s healthcare facilities are subpar leading to a higher than normal mortality rate.

Either way, it’s not a good situation for Iran. The nation is already reeling from a series of crushing sanctions….It cannot export its oil and its banking system has been cut off from Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) making international banking transactions impossible for the mullahs.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic in Iran, bordering nations have closed their borders with the Islamic Republic and suspended air service. Iran is now more isolated than ever.

Moreover, Iran’s healthcare system has long been neglected by the regime, which has instead chosen to spend its limited resources on fighting proxy wars in far-flung places, constructing ballistic missiles and developing a rogue nuclear program. Consequently, healthcare workers have neither the means nor the ability to contain and treat those infected. There are critical shortages on everything from facemasks to basic medicines and testing facilities.

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/02/coronavirus-exposes-iranian-deceit-and-ari-lieberman/