TEHRAN- Iran’s Health Minister Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi on Friday performed 12 eye surgeries in the rural and deprived areas of Fereydunshahr City, Isfahan Province, IRNA reported.

Qazizadeh Hashemi attended the healthcare facility in Islamabad village near Fereydunshahr and carried out the operations in the field hospital set up in the area.

The 12 operations took about three hours and half.

The surgical procedures were organized by Noavaran Salamat Foundation Qazizadeh Hashemi is one of the founders and a member of.

The foundation, launched around 1989, is a charity organization that delivers ophthalmological and dental services to people living in underprivileged areas.

Since founding the organization, Qazizadeh Hashemi has travelled to 15 rural areas, six of which were after he took office in the health ministry.

Amirhossein Jafari, executive manager of the Noavaran Salamat Foundation, also said that over the last month, students aged 6-15 and expectant women in their second trimesters living in 22 villages of Fereydunshahr were offered complimentary examinations.

Fereydunshahr, a city with a population of 35,000, is situated 180 kilometers to the west of Isfahan with 84 villages. In the spring and summer of each year, 20,000 nomads move into the city.