DUBAI: Dozens of Iranian political and civic activists – including former politicians – have called out Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s leadership amid the coronavirus outbreak in Iran, which has one of the highest infections and casualties in the world.
A group of 100 activists signed an open letter to criticize the Iranian government, including President Hassan Rouhani whom they slammed for downplaying the virus as an “enemy plot.”
The signatories, according to a report by Iranian Radio Farda, said Iran had covered up the outbreak for political interests.
An Iranian official later said the virus was spreading in Iran “without being noticed” since around January 20, the report said.
The activists also called out Khamenei’s “reluctance” in allocating funds to fight the spread of COVID-19, saying Khamenei had earlier endorsed a budget of $222 million for the Quds Forces, an arm of the Revolutionary Guards.
Iran’s coronavirus cases stood at 38,309 on Monday with 2,640 deaths.
