Iranian Ministers turn up masked for cabinet meet

Tehran, March 11 All Iranian ministers, save President Hassan Rouhani, turned up wearing face masks at a cabinet meeting here on Wednesday as the country grappled with the coronavirus outbreak.

Photographs released by the Iranian presidency show ministers wearing face masks and gloves at the cabinet meeting in Tehran on Wednesday.

During the meeting, Rouhani called on the people to reduce their movements as much as possible in order to contain the outbreak, which has left 354 people dead.

He also warned against "exaggerating" the death toll and causing "fear and anxiety" among the public, the BBC reported.

Two weeks ago, Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi tested positive for the Covid-19 virus, just one of many Iranian officials and politic to have been infected.

( With inputs from IANS )