Dubai: Iran has paraded disinfection vehicles, mobile hospitals and other medical equipment to mark its Army Day as the country’s death toll from the coronavirus outbreak rose by 89 to 4958.
The total number of cases of infection in the Middle East country hardest hit by the pandemic rose to 79,494, of which 3563 were in critical condition, health ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said on state television on Friday.
A parliamentary report released earlier this week said the coronavirus death toll might be almost double the figures announced by the health ministry, and the number of infections eight to 10 times more given a lack of widespread testing.
Friday’s small “Defenders of the Homeland, Helpers of Health” army parade was held at a training centre before a group of commanders in face masks to underscore the military’s role in battling the highly infections COVID-19 disease.
It was a far cry from the typical Army Day parades, which normally feature spectacles of infantry, missiles, submarines and armoured vehicles, with warplanes flying overhead.
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