- Saeed Namaki, regime’s Health Minister: We are following up the procurement of vaccines from a manufacturer in another country. We will start its third clinical phase in February. I hope we will be able to use our domestically made vaccine by the end of the coming spring. (IRNA news agency, January 3, 2021)
- Today, the Iranian Immunology and Allergy Association said it “emphasizes the need to immediately purchase the required amount of vaccine from the types approved by international authorities, with full transparency about the type and the country of production of the vaccines. Any delays will cause more lives to be lost.
- Alireza Raisi, the spokesman for the National Coronavirus Combat Taskforce (NCCT): In Ardabil, Golestan, Gilan, and Mazandaran provinces, the COVID-19 the trend has not decreased. In Mazandaran, most villages are affected by COVID-19. (Asr-e Iran daily, January 3, 2021)
- Head of Environmental Organization: diesel and fuel pollution will increase COVID-19 mortality six-fold. (Khabar-Fori news site, January 2, 2021)
- Member of the Health Commission: This year, due to Coronavirus, air pollution should be given more serious attention. The government should decide to close Tehran when the weather conditions in Tehran reaches dangerous levels. (ISNA news agency, January 3, 2021)
- Alireza Zali, head of the NCCT in Tehran: Tehran is still in orange, and the situation in Varamin, Shemiranat, and Rey are similar to Tehran. (State TV, January 2, 2021)
The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) announced on Sunday, January 3, 2021, that the Coronavirus death toll in 478 cities had exceeded 196,500. The number of victims in Tehran is 48,191, Isfahan 12,185, Qom 7,675, East Azerbaijan 7,527, Mazandaran 7,512, Gilan 6,976, Fars 6,013, Alborz 5,140, Golestan 4,847, Hamedan 4,670, Kerman 4,328, Central Province 4,073, Yazd 3,472, Zanjan 2,065, Hormozgan 2,060, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari 1,545, and Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad 1,419.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
January 3, 2021
