Iranian president predicts COVID-19 to last 6 more months in Iran

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned on Sunday that the coronavirus epidemic will last at least six more months in Iran until a valid vaccine is within public reach, official IRNA news agency reported.

   "Until we obtain a vaccine that is effective and get a sufficient quantity of it ... we will be confronting this situation," Rouhani said.

   However, it is not feasible to "completely cancel economic, social, cultural, and religious activity," nor to act as prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

   The Iranian president asked the public to respect hygiene and social distancing procedures, saying punitive measures will be announced next week against those who transgress norms and get infected with COVID-19.

   Iran reported a total of 324,692 COVID-19 cases by Saturday with 18,264 deaths.