Coronavirus takes out aide to Iran’s “supreme leader”

An adviser to Iran’s ruler Ayatollah Khamenei has died of coronavirus, according to Iranian state media. The deceased is Mohammad Mirmohammadi, age 71. He was a member of the Expediency Discernment Council (quite a name if the translation is accurate), which advises the Ayatollah and settles disputes with parliament.

Other high-ranking Iranians reportedly have contracted the disease. They include vice president Masoumeh Ebtekar, better known as Sister Mary, the spokeswoman for the US Embassy hostage takers in 1979 and deputy health minister Iraj Harirchi. He heads a task force on the coronavirus and had tried to downplay the epidemic.

In addition, Iran’s former ambassador to the Vatican reportedly died from the disease.

The reported figures on the scope of the epidemic in Iran are 1,501 cases and 66 deaths. However, given the number of high profile Iranians who have been struck by the virus, and given the chronic dishonesty of the regime, I’m inclined to think that the illness is considerably more prevalent than that in Iran.

I wonder what Iran’s theologically-minded leaders make of the fact that their Islamic Republic has been hit so hard by the virus and the fact that some of its key leaders are among the victims. But then, I also wonder whether Iran’s leaders still take theology seriously, or whether, at this point, the theology is 99 percent scam.

STEVE adds a question: If the Israelis do come up with a vaccine for the coronavirus as some reports suggest, will Iran purchase it?

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