TEHRAN – In a symbolic gesture initiated by Tehran Miniciapility, a hop-on hop-off bus on Sunday started roaming the downtown streets of the Iranian capital to mark healthcare workers who lost their lives to COVID-19.
Hundreds of front-line health professionals have so far died in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. According to available official data, some 60 percent of the martyrs were physicians, 20 percent were nurses and the rest were other hospital staff.
On January 27, Health Minister Saeed Namaki said Iran will soon be one of the world’s important manufacturers of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The novel coronavirus pandemic has brought travel to a standstill nearly all over the globe, including Iran, causing huge job and revenue losses. However, experts believe the impact of virus infection would be temporary and short-lived for the Islamic Republic, which ranked the third fastest-growing tourism destination in 2019.
Iran is home to one of the world’s oldest continuous major civilizations, embracing settlements dating back to 4000 BC.
AFM/