TEHRAN – Iran has launched a production line for a medicine effective in the treatment of coronavirus, IRIB reported on Tuesday.

The Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam unveiled three raw pharmaceuticals and a new anti-coronavirus drug called Ivermectin, which had been previously imported.

The Headquarters previously unveiled COVIRAN BAREKAT, the first coronavirus vaccine made by Iranian researchers, on December 29, 2020.

Iran also produced drugs confirmed to be effective in the coronavirus treatment, including, Remdesivir, Tocilizumab.

Mohammad Reza Shanehsaz, head of the Food and Drug Administration, said in January 2019 that the Iranian pharmaceutical industry and scientists are capable of producing any kind of medicine over a two-year period.

Health Minister Saeed Namaki said in December 2019 that some 97 percent of the whole medicine consumed in the country is produced domestically and only 3 percent is imported.

COVID-19 daily new cases and mortalities

In a press briefing on Tuesday, Health Ministry’s spokesperson Sima-Sadat Lari confirmed 5,917 new cases of COVID-19 infection, raising the total number of infections to 1,342,134. She added that 1,131,883 patients have so far recovered, but 4,272 remain in critical conditions of the disease.

During the past 24 hours, 87 patients have lost their lives, bringing the total number of deaths to 56,973, she added.

So far, 8,634,553 COVID-19 diagnostic tests have been performed in the country.

Lari noted that currently, 10 cities are in high-risk “red” zones, and 23 cities are in the orange zone and 163 in low-risk “yellow” zones.

FB/MG