Iran is the country most affected by the pandemic in the Middle East Iran’s total death toll from the new coronavirus outbreak rose to 4,357 DUBAI: President Hassan Rouhani urged Iranians to respect health protocols as “low-risk” economic activities resumed in most of the country on Saturday, state news agency IRNA reported. So-called low-risk businesses will resume across the country from Saturday with the exception of the capital Tehran, where they will restart from April 18. Iran is the Middle Eastern country worst-affected by the new coronavirus. “Easing restrictions does not mean ignoring health protocols ... social distancing and other health protocols should be respected seriously by people,” Rouhani was quoted as saying. Iran’s total death toll from the new coronavirus outbreak rose to 4,357 on Saturday, with 125 people having lost their lives in the past 24 hours, the health ministry said. The total number of people diagnosed with the disease rose by 1,837 in the past 24 hours to a total of 70,029, ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpur said on state TV, with 3,987 of those infected in critical condition. Iran is the country most affected by the pandemic in the Middle East.