A woman wears a protective respiratory mask, Qom, Iran, February 25, 2020 (Anadolu)

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has rejected quarantines to check the spread of Coronavirus, despite a rise in the official toll to 19 dead and 139 infected.

Rouhani said on Wednesday that there were no plans to limit movement: “Individuals may be quarantined, but declaring quarantine in a city or a neighborhood is out of question.”

The statement reinforced his declaration on Tuesday that fear of the virus was a Western conspiracy to undermine the Islamic Republic: “We must all continue our work and activities, because it is one of the enemies’ plots to spread fear in our country and close down the country.”

He insisted, “The virus is being controlled and number of people going to hospitals has reduced dramatically.”

See also Iran Daily, Feb 26: Rouhani Says Fear of Coronavirus is “Enemy Conspiracy” as Deputy Health Minister Among Infected

The President reiterated Wednesday, “We must not let America to add a new virus to the coronavirus by halting our social activities by spreading tremendous fear….Americans better take care of thousands of flu casualties in their own country.”

The US has had 60 confirmed cases of Coronavirus, include 45 cases Americans who were repatriated from Wuhan, China or the Diamond Princess cruise ship which docked in Japan.

Health Minister Saeed Namaki said there are plans for restrictions at some holy sites and cancel some Friday Prayer sermons.

The center of the outbreak is in Qom, the holy city in central Iran. A conservative MP from the city said on Sunday that 50 people had died there and 250 were in quarantine, pushing the Health Ministry to acknowledge that there were 12 victims and 64 cases.

Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi said he would resign if the toll a quarter of the 50 claimed by the Qom MP; however, his declaration was undercut on Monday night when he announced that he had tested positive for the virus.

Even the limited measures announced by the Health Ministry are being challenged by other parts of the regime.

Cleric Mohammad Saeedi said that the Masoumeh shrine in Qom should not be closed. Instead, he said the architecture of the shrine and its metal ornaments will protect everyone against viruses.