AKIPRESS.COM - A county in southwestern Iran has been placed under lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, Tasnim news agency reported, also quoting the provincial governor as saying there had been a sharp rise in new cases across the province.

Gholamreza Shariati, governor of Khuzestan province that borders Iraq and includes the county of Abadan, said people had not been observing social distancing rules.

"Because of this the number of corona patients in the province has tripled and the hospitalisation of patients has risen by 60 percent," Shariati said.

Iran, one of the countries in the Middle East hit hardest by the coronavirus, has begun easing restrictions on normal life in order to keep afloat its economy, already battered by US sanctions.