New Covid-19 restrictions will be implemented across Iran at the end of this week as cases in the country hit a record daily high. The new measures could last "until the eradication of the pandemic", authorities said.
The restrictions will come into force on 21 November and could last "until the foreseeable future, possibly into the next Iranian year" which starts on 20 March, Iranian president Hassan Rohani said. More than 100 cities will be categorised as high-risk red zones under the new programme. Only a third of employees in these areas will be allowed to leave home for work purposes. Entering and leaving the zones will be limited, according to the government's Covid-19 task force.
Restrictions will also be imposed on what the government classes as category two, three and four businesses. Category two includes venues such as non-food shops and shopping malls, holy sites and mosques, non-essential food stories, restaurants and barber shops. Category three includes educational institutions, cinemas, theatres, museums and public transportation, while category four includes social, cultural and religious events.
Iran has labelled 150 cities as medium-risk or orange zones, and another 155 cities as low-risk or yellow zones. More precise details of the measures will be issued by the end of this week. The government already introduced restrictions in around 40 of the more high-risk cities late last month, but these do not seem to have had much of an impact. Iran today reported a record-high daily death count of 486, and a new daily infection count of 13,053. Daily case numbers rose to an average of close to 10,200 in the first half of November, up from an average of 4,100 a day in the first half of October.
The new measures will have a negative impact on transport fuel demand in Iran, which had shown signs of recovery back in August. Latest available data show that Iranian gasoline consumption was 410,000-440,000 b/d in early August, up significantly from around 313,000 b/d at the height of the first round of Covid-19 restrictions in April. But this was still down from pre-pandemic levels of around 475,000 b/d in December last year.
