Iraj Harirchi
Iraj Harirchi Tabrizi (Persian: ایرج حریرچی تبریزی; born 1966) is an Iranian politician and surgeon. He is the lecturer at Tehran University of Medical Sciences at Tehran Cancer Institute. He is working as the deputy minister of Health and Medical Education.
Iraj Harirchi Tabrizi | |
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ایرج حریرچی تبریزی | |
Director of National Center for Fight with Coronavirus | |
Assumed office 24 February 2020 | |
President | Hassan Rouhani |
Deputy Minister of Health | |
Assumed office 22 October 2014 | |
President | Hassan Rouhani |
Personal details | |
Born | 1966 (age 53–54) Tabriz, Iran |
2020 COVID-19 outbreak
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran, on 25 February, Harirchi announced that he had been diagnosed with COVID-19, and had self-quarantined.[1] Just the day before, parliamentarian Ahmad Amirabadi Farahani's claimed that 50 people had died in Qom from COVID-19, which Harirchi denied.[2] At the press conference, Harirchi was coughing and sweating.[3] On 12 March, Saeed Namaki noted that Iraj Harirchi had fully recovered from the virus.[4]
During the COVID-19 pandemic he said that "Iran opposed quarantines, because it belonged to an era before the First World War".[5] This statement was met with much criticism in universities as well as in social media.[6]
References
- "Coronavirus: Iran's deputy health minister tests positive as outbreak worsens". BBC News. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- "Legislator from Iran's Qom alleges coronavirus coverup". Al Jazeera English. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- "Iran's deputy health minister tests positive for coronavirus". Middle East Eye. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- "Iran deputy health minister recovers from coronavirus". Mehr News Agency. 12 March 2020.
- "The Newyorker".
- "Alef New Agency, comments".