Iran: Death toll from coronavirus surges past 7,000

Iran on Monday confirmed 69 more fatalities from coronavirus over the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide death toll to 7,057.

A further 2,294 people tested positive for COVID-19, raising the overall count to 122,492, Iran's state broadcaster reported, citing a Health Ministry statement.

The statement added that 95,661 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals so far, while 2,712 patients remain in critical condition.

In Iran, one of the countries in the Middle East hardest hit by the virus, COVID-19 was first detected in the city of Qom on Feb. 19 and then spread throughout the country.

Since the virus emerged in Wuhan, China last December, it has spread to 188 countries and regions.

The global death toll from the novel coronavirus has exceeded 315,000, with more than 4.73 million confirmed cases, and recoveries topping 1.73 million, according to a running tally by the US' Johns Hopkins University.