Fam tour in Lorestan province canceled as virus picks up again

TEHRAN – A preplanned familiarization tour in Lorestan, one of culturally and naturally rich provinces in western Iran, has been canceled as the spread of the coronavirus picks up again in parts of the country, organizers said on Tuesday.

Iran to start producing COVID-19 drug remdesivir next week

TEHRAN – Iran will start producing the antiviral agent remdesivir for the treatment of coronavirus patients next week, Health Minister Saeed Namaki said on Wednesday.

Covid-19 closes museums in Tehran once again

TEHRAN – All museums in Tehran have gone on lockdown again for one more week following the increase in the number of people infected with the coronavirus, IRNA reported.

AFC makes COVID-19 test mandatory

TEHRAN- Asian Football Confederation (AFC)’s Medical Committee has approved new decisions for all the AFC competitions in 2020 and the AFC sent them to the member associations, as announced by the Iranian football federation.

Tehran hosting intl. paper, related machinery exhibition

TEHRAN- Iran’s 3rd International Specialized Exhibition of Paper, Cardboard, Cellulose Products, and Related Machinery kicked off at the Tehran Permanent International Fairgrounds on Tuesday, Public Relations Department of Iran International Exhibitions Company (IIEC) reported.

Iranian para athletes join ‘I Wear a Mask’ campaign

TEHRAN – Iranian para athletes have joined “I Wear A Mask’ camping.

IranAir to resume Istanbul flights after five-month halt over virus pandemic

TEHRAN – Iran’s flag carrier Homa, known internationally as IranAir, is scheduled to resume Tehran-Istanbul flights following some five months of suspension over the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Iran’s proposal welcomed at COMCEC tourism meeting

TEHRAN – Iran’s proposal concerning the revival of domestic travels in the era of coronavirus has been welcomed at a recent webinar of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC), which is affiliated with the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation.

'Persepolis are not champions yet' - Yahya Golmohammadi

TEHRAN – Persepolis football team coach Yahya Golmohammadi has warned his team there is still a lot of work left to be done in their bid to win the Iran Professional League title.

Travel industry set to reflect true image of Iran’s safety, capability

TEHRAN – Iran has been taking major efforts to guarantee the safety of foreign travelers and reflect a true image of the country and its capacities in the tourism sector, deputy tourism minister Vali Teymouri said on Saturday.

Coronavirus more infectious now by 3-9 times: Iranian expert

TEHRAN – Global researches show that a specific change in the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus genome has caused it to be more infectious by 3-9 times compared to the onset of the pandemic, deputy health minister Reza Malekzadeh has said.

Iran eyes to attract more travelers from Turkey

TEHRAN – Iranian travel agencies plan to offer stimulus packages and hold familiarization tours for Turkish agencies, tour operators, journalists, and influencers in a bid to attract more travelers from the neighboring country.

Coronavirus halves road accident casualties in Iran

TEHRAN – Traffic-related accidents and mortalities have decreased by 50 percent over the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-June 20) compared to the same period last year due to the outbreak of coronavirus which has slashed travels across the country.

Coronavirus shuts Zanjan’s Katale-Khor cave once again 

TEHRAN – Katale-Khor, a limestone cave full of natural crystals believed to date from the Jurassic era, has gone on lockdown again for at least two weeks following the increase in the number of people infected with the coronavirus, CHTN reported. 

U.S. political approach fails in global coronavirus fight, Iran says

TEHRAN – The United States has practically failed in the fight against COVID-19 by taking a political approach toward the global crisis, said Iranian Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Mohammad Shariatmadari.

“Pishi Mishi” producer cancels Iranian premiere over escalation in COVID-19 cases   

TEHRAN – Producer Ahmad Ahmadi canceled the Iranian premiere of his latest film “Pishi Mishi” after a massive rise in the death toll from coronavirus in the country over the past few days.

450 knowledge-based companies producing anti-corona equipment

TEHRAN – About 450 knowledge-based companies are active in the country for manufacturing protective equipment and treatment products to fight the coronavirus, Mehdi Kashmiri, director for technology and planning at the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, said.

Iran, Australia share experience on fight against coronavirus, wildfires

TEHRAN – Karim Hemmati, the head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), and Lyndall Sachs, the Australian Ambassador to Iran, discussed ways to expand cooperation through exchanging experience on battling COVID-19 and wildfires.

COVID-19 rings alarm bells in Iran as daily deaths surge to 200

TEHRAN – The number of daily COVID-19 mortalities in the country hit a new record high of 200 on Tuesday and the total number of deaths reached 11,931, as officials warn of an alarming situation in the days ahead.

Visits to Kermanshah tourist sites plummet as coronavirus forces travel curbs

TEHRAN – Some 32,000 travelers visited historical and tourist sites across Kermanshah province during the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year (started March 20), a sharp decline compared to around 232,000 visits in the same period last year as travel curbs were imposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Lorestan province to hold fam tour despite pandemic

TEHRAN – Lorestan tourism department is scheduled to hold a familiarization tour in a bid to promote traveling to the western province.

Some 3,000 tourism workers in Kish lose job over coronavirus outbreak 

TEHRAN – Some 3,000 tourism workers in Kish Island have lost their jobs temporarily as the coronavirus has nearly closed down all travel hotspots across the Persian Gulf island, ILNA reported. 

Tehran to host major carpet exhibit in Sept. despite coronavirus concerns

TEHRAN – Tehran will host an international carpet exhibition in September as the event had been postponed for some three months over coronavirus concerns.

By Faranak Bakhtiari

Health network playing a key role in fighting coronavirus

TEHRAN - Jafar Sadeq Tabrizi, the director of health network department at the Ministry of Health, has said the health network has been playing a key role in fighting the coronavirus pandemic mostly through holding seminars, equipping medical centers, and implementing screening tests and family physician programs across the country.

Coronavirus causes $357m damage to Kish Island’s tourism

TEHRAN – Kish Island’s tourism industry has taken 15 trillion rials (over $357 million) hit from the coronavirus outbreak over the previous months.

Iran football plunged into crisis once again

TEHRAN - The coronavirus has once again plunged the Iranian football into crisis.

‘Effective advertising could get tourism out of coronavirus crisis’

TEHRAN – Iran’s deputy tourism minister Vali Teymouri said on Wednesday that producing effective advertising content on social media could get the tourism sector out of the coronavirus crisis. 

Iran files lawsuit against U.S. over sanctions effects

TEHRAN - Laya Joneidi, the presidential aide for legal affairs, announced on Saturday that Iran has filed a lawsuit in the International Court of Justice against the United States over effects of sanctions on fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Iran’s judo league ended due to coronavirus outbreak

TEHRAN – Iran judo league was officially brought to an end due to coronavirus outbreak.