Iranian people ravaged by epidemic, lies and sanctions, resume activities

By
M.Zack
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An Iranian man is pilgriming Imam Reza shrine Which is closed as a precautionary measure due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus since 19 March 2020. The shrine of Imam Reza (Haram Motahar-e Razavi) is located in the center of Mashhad; the city is the second largest city of Iran with more than 20 million Iranian and non-Iranian Shias visiting the shrine each year.

AHMAD HASANI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES

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Posted today at 3:40 p.m., updated at 4:21 p.m.

ReportPhotographers from the Middle East Images collective tell the inside story of the final months of a new chaotic episode in Iran.

Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei wanted crowded streets for the anniversary of the founding of the Islamic Republic on February 11. And an important participation in the legislative elections of February 21. None of this has happened, but the cases of Covid 19 have multiplied. It has become impossible to deny the obvious: the virus was spreading in Iran, which was to become one of its main global foci in the first weeks of the pandemic. Officials are hit, one after the other. The power minimizes its impact, but the epidemic settles in the life of the Iranians, in spite of the promises of the president, Hassan Rohani, who had initially assured that the question would be quickly resolved then denounced a "Enemy plot".

Tehran, March 17. The city of Ekbatan, west of the city, one evening of confinement.
Tehran, March 17. The city of Ekbatan, west of the city, one evening of confinement. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EATT IMAGES
Arak, March 17. A young woman and her brother during the Feast of Fire, celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday in the year of the Persian calendar.
Arak, March 17. A young woman and her brother during the Feast of Fire, celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday in the year of the Persian calendar. SINA YAGHOOBPOOR / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Shiraz, March 1. Employees of the ministry of health, of the city and of the firefighters organize, at night, vast actions of disinfection in the streets.
Shiraz, March 1. Employees of the ministry of health, of the city and of the firefighters organize, at night, vast actions of disinfection in the streets. MOHAMMADREZA DEHDARI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, view of confined housing developments in the north of the city, on February 27.
In Tehran, view of confined housing developments in the north of the city, on February 27. SOBHAN FARAJVAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, a soldier in a coverall against the Covid-19, on March 25.
In Tehran, a soldier in a coverall against the Covid-19, on March 25. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, March 1. In the first days of the crisis, the cafes were still open.
In Tehran, March 1. In the first days of the crisis, the cafes were still open. AZAD AMIN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Isfahan, February 27. Tourists visit the Zayandeh Roud River Bridge, despite the announcement of the first victims of the Covid-19.
Isfahan, February 27. Tourists visit the Zayandeh Roud River Bridge, despite the announcement of the first victims of the Covid-19. HOSSEIN DEHGHANIAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Isfahan, on February 27.
In Isfahan, on February 27. HOSSEIN DEHGHANIAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
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The confusion

At the beginning of March, confusion reigned. Should religious shrines be closed? In the holy city of Qom, epicenter of the epidemic, the Fatima Masoumeh sanctuary still welcomes pilgrims. Members of the clergy, linked to power, resist. They will eventually bow to the demands of the government, which faces another dilemma. Imposing general containment would limit the scale of the epidemic, which is already weighing heavily on the hospital system, but could be fatal to an already bloodless economy ravaged by American sanctions. Official figures are widely disputed, even within the system, but caregivers are elevated to the rank of heroes. The military announces that it will impose quarantine. Nothing is happening. Officials in the provinces are calling for local containment. We snub them.

Tehran, March 5. Virology laboratories organize the rendering of results in front of their buildings.
Tehran, March 5. Virology laboratories organize the rendering of results in front of their buildings. SOBHAN FARAJVAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Gorgan, March 1. In the Covid-19 treatment department at 5 Azar Hospital.
Gorgan, March 1. In the Covid-19 treatment department at 5 Azar Hospital. MOHAMMAD NESAEI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Gorgan, at 5 Azar Hospital, March 1
In Gorgan, at 5 Azar Hospital, on March 1 MOHAMMAD NESAEI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
(Left) In Shiraz, the stadium was transformed into a Covid-19 patient hospital on March 25. (Right) In Tehran, a mausoleum is disinfected on March 6.
(Left) In Shiraz, the stadium was transformed into a Covid-19 patient hospital on March 25. (Right) In Tehran, a mausoleum is disinfected on March 6. AMIN BERENJKAR / SOBHAN FARAJVAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Shiraz, March 5. In the bazaar of Vakil, the main city, all shops are closed.
Shiraz, March 5. In the bazaar of Vakil, the main city, all shops are closed. MOHAMMADREZA DEHDARI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Shiraz, March 17. Teachers and students of the Islamic Institute disinfect mosques.
Shiraz, March 17. Teachers and students of the Islamic Institute disinfect mosques. AMIN BERENJKAR / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES

New Year

When the Iranian New Year arrives on March 20, people confronted with devalued and contradictory public statements do not systematically respect preventive measures. Health professionals and former ministers are calling on the government to resign itself to enforcing containment. A week later, it was decided to ban travel from one city to another. Many shops close. Restrictive measures are finally coming. Officially, the death toll was then 2,378. The government was carrying out a diplomatic offensive, accusing the American sanctions of worsening the health crisis which hit the country. The Supreme Guide evokes the thesis of the creation of the virus by the American enemy.

Machhad, April 7. Residents of the same building exercise on the roof.
Machhad, April 7. Residents of the same building exercise on the roof. FARNOOSH FARSHCHI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Isfahan, April 17. A couple makes pairs of gloves.
Isfahan, April 17. A couple makes pairs of gloves. HOSSEIN DEHEGHANIAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
At Ahvaz, Soraya takes care of washing each of the masks that she recovered on April 8.
At Ahvaz, Soraya takes care of washing each of the masks that she recovered on April 8. SEYED MADYAR SHOJAEIFAR / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Sari, March 26. A group of mullahs has volunteered to conduct the funeral of a Covid-19 victim.
Sari, March 26. A group of mullahs has volunteered to conduct the funeral of a Covid-19 victim. MOHAMMAD REZAEI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Sari, March 26.
In Sari, March 26. MOHAMMAD REZAEI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Sari, March 26
In Sari, March 26 MOHAMMAD REZAEI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES

An optimistic president

In early April, the president announces the resumption of activities "Low risk" for April 11. The newly elected Iranian parliament meets for the first time and rejects an emergency bill providing for month-long confinement nationwide. Life has to start again. Iran’s economic situation demands it. The number of new cases is decreasing. The stores reopen in the provinces then, ten days later, in the capital.

Article reserved for our subscribers Read also Iran ends containment to avoid economic collapse

Iranians can again move around the country. President Rohani welcomes the management of the crisis by his government. On April 14, a report from the Iranian Parliament's research center suggests that the number of cases and deaths linked to Covid-19 could be double that officially recognized. Crowds are back on the streets of Tehran. We fear now for the end of the month, in the capital, a new wave.

In Tehran, the Milad tower and the resumption of traffic on the main arteries, on April 11.
In Tehran, the Milad tower and the resumption of traffic on the main arteries, on April 11. SOBHAN FARAJVAN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In the capital, garbage collectors did not stop working during the critical period of the epidemic, as here, on April 11.
In the capital, garbage collectors did not stop working during the critical period of the epidemic, as here, on April 11. AZAD AMIN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
Tehran, April 12. The delivery business is thriving.
Tehran, April 12. The delivery business is thriving. AZAD AMIN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
On the streets of Tehran, April 12.
On the streets of Tehran, April 12. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, a brave couple in their forties chatted in Parvaz Park, in the north of the city, on April 16.
In Tehran, a brave couple in their forties chatted in Parvaz Park, in the north of the city, on April 16. AZAD AMIN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, the grand bazaar opens again to traders and customers on April 18.
In Tehran, the grand bazaar opens again to traders and customers on April 18. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, on April 13, in a shop decorated with the portrait of Ghassem Soleimani, general killed in January in Iraq.
In Tehran, on April 13, in a shop decorated with the portrait of Ghassem Soleimani, general killed in January in Iraq. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Darband, a popular neighborhood at the foot of the mountain, north of the capital, restaurants and cafes await authorization to reopen on April 11.
In Darband, a popular neighborhood at the foot of the mountain, north of the capital, restaurants and cafes await authorization to reopen on April 11. AZAD AMIN / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Machhad, in a mosque at prayer time on April 11.
In Machhad, in a mosque at prayer time on April 11. SADEGH ZABBAH / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES
In Tehran, on the heights of the city, on April 12.
In Tehran, on the heights of the city, on April 12. ARMIN KARAMI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES

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