A member of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Expediency Discernment Council, Seyed Mohammad Mir-Mohammadi, died of Coronavirus.

His death comes as other top Iranian officials have contracted the virus, Tasnim news agency reported on Monday.

The country has the highest death toll in the world, after China. Seyed Mohammad Mir-Mohammadi was 71.

Iran, along with Italy, has just recently become a new coronavirus hotbed outside of China.

The number of people infected with COVID-19 in the Islamic Republic is approaching 600.

Earlier, several Iranian officials fell ill with coronavirus as Iran has become the epicentre of the outbreak in the Middle East.

Minister tests positive

The contagion concerns Alessandro Mattinzoli, 60, who serves as commissioner for economic development, the Lombardy region said in a statement. The entire 17-member Lombardy regional government will now undergo testing for the novel coronavirus, the region said.

The number of people infected in Italy – the centre of the outbreak in Europe – has jumped to 1,694, while in France the figure rose to 130. With the outbreak deepening, the staff at the Louvre in Paris voted to close the iconic museum. (NAN)