Iran confirms 2,560 new coronavirus cases, 240,438 in total

Iran's confirmed coronavirus cases rose to 240,438 on Sunday after an overnight registration of 2,560 new infections, reported Xinhua, quoting state-run IRNA news agency.

Sima Sadat Lari, the spokeswoman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said at her daily briefing that out of the new cases in the past 24 hours, 1,295 have been hospitalized.

The pandemic has so far claimed the lives of 11,571 Iranians, up by 163 in the past 24 hours.

Besides, 201,330 have recovered and been discharged from hospitals while 3,168 remain in critical condition.

According to Lari, 1,794,727 lab tests for COVID-19 have been carried out in Iran as of Sunday.

The Iranian health official said that 18 provinces are in high-risk or alert condition.

The Iranian health authorities mandated the use of masks in indoor public spaces from Sunday.

Iran announced its first cases of COVID-19 on Feb. 19.

Iran and China have offered mutual help in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

In mid-February, at the early stage of the coronavirus outbreak in China, Iran lit up the Tehran Azadi (Liberty) Tower to show its solidarity with China, and donated 3 million masks to China.

In return, China has delivered several shipments of medical supplies to Iran. On Feb. 29, a five-member Chinese medical team visited Iran for a month-long mission to help Iran fight the pandemic.