In Iran, the numbers of those killed by coronavirus are feared to be astronomically higher than what the regime is claiming. Yet the Islamic Republic’s priority has continued to be keeping Islamic shrines open in defiance of all warnings.
The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced a “biological defense exercise” against coronavirus, an action that goes beyond public prayer at shrines and acceptance of the “martyrdom” of a death from coronavirus. Ayatollah Khamenei some time ago declared a “health jihad” against the coronavirus, as he downplayed the catastrophic effects of COVID-19 upon his nation. The IRGC’s “biological defense exercise” is apparently a full military display of “health jihad” bravado, but is, less glamorously, a disinfecting cleanup job.
All medical centers of the IRGC Ground Force would be used at full capacity during the exercise and that disinfectant operations will take place in 3,000 locations across the country, including 100 in the capital of Tehran. The exercise will also involve 100 units of the IRGC Ground Force across 10 bases to carry out the cleaning operations.
It sure beats licking shrines.
“Iran’s IRGC to Stage ‘Biological Defense Exercise’ Against Coronavirus,” by Ben Kew, Breitbart, March 24, 2020:
The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, will stage a “biological defense exercise” on Wednesday against the Chinese coronavirus, Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Mohammad Pakpour announced at a press conference on Tuesday.
According to the state-run Tasmin News Agency, Pakpour explained that all medical centers of the IRGC Ground Force would be used at full capacity during the exercise and that disinfectant operations will take place in 3,000 locations across the country, including 100 in the capital of Tehran. The exercise will also involve 100 units of the IRGC Ground Force across 10 bases to carry out the cleaning operations.
The operation comes after Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei claimed this month, without evidence, that Iran had been subject to a “biological attack” following the outbreak of the virus. He then ordered the military to set up an operation aimed at supporting the Health Ministry’s efforts against the disease.
Last week, Iranian state media issued a dire warning to its citizens over the severity of the pandemic, suggesting there could be “millions” of fatalities should people not follow medical warnings. Many of the country’s Islamic fundamentalists have repeatedly ignored government advice in order to continue observing religious practices such as kissing holy shrines.
“If people begin to cooperate now, Iran will see 120,000 infections and 12,000 deaths before the outbreak is over,” said state television journalist and medical doctor Dr. Afruz Eslami. “If they offer medium cooperation, there will be 300,000 cases and 110,000 deaths.”
Iran has so far recorded nearly 25,000 cases of the coronavirus and close to 2,000 deaths, making it one of the most affected countries in the world. Multiple reports from outside Iran have accused the regime of underplaying the deaths, suggesting even these high numbers are only a fraction of the true extent of the damage. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has also repeatedly accused the U.S. of damaging their efforts through the continued imposition of economic sanctions. Ayatollah Khamenei has previously insisted that outbreak is “not such a big tragedy” and can be overcome through the launching of a healt
h “jihad.”
mortimer says
A BBC article said the infection and death tolls in Iran may well be six times higher than reported. Those studying the virus are alarmed that the death rate in Iran is the highest of any countries reporting, namely 16% of all those infected.
When the virus has run its course, I believe the fatalities in Iran will be in the tens of thousands. There will be a tremendous resentment against the mullahs who incompetently mismanaged this plague and failed to do what was necessary for public health safety.
The doctors in Iran must be very sad about this too. They can see up close the madness of mullahs. Surely, all decent people in Iran bitterly resent the heartless irresponsibility of the mullahocracy.
I pray this illness will be the last straw that will bring this evil regime down for good.
jayell says
I believe that this illness is also creating fundamental repercussions in the People’s Republic of China, where the story is apparently far from over despite the propaganda. They say it’s an ill wind that blows no good, however………
gravenimage says
+1
Beverly says
In my opinion, you cannot believe in science and Islam at the same time.
Westman says
Egypt’s Al-Azhar offers course work in the Religious Sciences; likely the Qom seminaries also teach them. Those “sciences” seem to be something like, “If Allah wants something to function, it does, and if Allah doesn’t want it to work, then it doesn’t.”
No use mucking about with the principles of Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, it’s all Inshullah. Apparenty, Allah is not willing, or, has been distracted in some other part of the universe. It couldn’t possibly be that Muhammad was Allah….
FYI says
Surely the term Religious Sciences is an oxymoron.
{imagine The School of Koranic Astronomy….
The rainbow:there is only one color and its name is muhammed}
muslims claim the koran is full of incredible scientific wonders.
In the koran allah tells us ..
“The Hour drew near and the Moon was rent in twain” koran 54:1
But nobody noticed that it seems ..except muhammed{the same muhammed who had a flying donkey with a woman’s face and a peacock tail but nobody ever saw that either.You just have to take muhammed’s word for it,the same muhammed who said “I have fabricated things against God and attributed to him things he has not said” al tabari 6:111.Perfect mo: a man you can trust….}
It can never be,in Logical terms,islam AND Science: it can only ever be islam OR science.
Peter Clemerson says
I did a short university coarse on the Qur’an a few years ago in which the term ‘Islamic sciences’ got used quite frequently. What became clear is that the term is not used to refer to the natural sciences such as physics and chemistry but rather to the way in which numerous pious authorities (alright, scholars if you wish) have interpreted the Q and Ahadith down the ages and, for example, generated Islamic law.
If you think of the term ‘sciences’ to refer only to reliable knowledge, it is possible to use the term ‘Islamic sciences’ to refer to trustworthy documentation of how historical and esteemed figures in the Islamic world have debated and argued with each other for centuries, just as other religious figures have always done (what else can they do as there is no objective evidence that they can call upon), then we will not make silly comparisons between, for example, the Al Azhar sheiks and Iranian Ayatollahs on the one hand and Nobel Prize winners on the other.
By the way, Beverly, I agree that you cannot believe in Islam and the natural sciences at the same time. Nor in any of the other religions and the natural sciences at the same time. That is why in the West, the traditional religions are in decline and the Imams and Mullahs (and priests and rabbis) are terrified by the success of the natural sciences. They know that these sciences raise and spread doubt, probably even in their own minds. (See https://religionnews.com/2019/09/05/an-online-community-of-ex-clergy-nears-a-milestone/)
.
mortimer says
Europeans call theology ‘The Queen of Sciences’.
Islam’s ‘koranic science’ is based on explaining that Allah did not really say what he really said.
gravenimage says
I’m not sure any Europeans have used that term in this context for several hundred years. It was coined by Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century, and used “science” in the sense of “knowledge”, not in the modern sense.
Captsin says
Sure you can. Everyone knows the world is flat.
Jayell says
If you believe in Science (good science, that is), you’re at least believing in intellectual integrity and honesty and the intelligent use of verifiable facts. If you choose to believe in Islam instead,y ou might you might as well also believe in Grimm’s fairy stories, although islam’s quite a bit grimmer. (I was going to cite Hans Christian Andersen instead of the brithers Grimm, but that name doesn’t seem to be very apposite in this context, and ‘Hans Mohemmed Khomeini’ doesn’t sound very nice).
By the way, if that picture is supposed to be of Iran’s ‘Biological Defence’ forces it’s hardly very convincing.. It looks like a cross between a Nuremberg rally and a WW2 UK ‘Dad’s Army’ parade, with their high-velocity broomsticks.
A Gnostic Agnostic says
Looks more like a call to mobilize armies for jihad to me.
mortimer says
No, AGA, they are mobilizing these young chaps as a BUCKET BRIGADE to sponge off surfaces that could carry the virus using a solution of bleach, etc.
Those boys (should they survive) will develop a strong aversion to the smell of bleach.
Peter35 says
Ah, the virus. We are told viruses are killed by sunlight and U.V. which leads me to speculate idly if we might have a problem due to the findings of scientists in Israel and Germany back in the ’50s–Global Dimming.
If Global Dimming is indeed happening, possibly the virus will not be killed off as quickly as is hoped, and that would certainly be a much bigger problem than the present twin scams of global warming and rising sea levels.
mortimer says
If the Revolutionary Guard all becomes ill because of their dubious, unscientific training, problem half solved.
gravenimage says
Iran: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps stages “biological defense exercise” against coronavirus
……………….
Uh…right. Because you send out the Revolutionary Guard as a cleaning brigade…
Goofy says
Islamic medical science is very advanced and is based on the Koran, Prophet Muhammad’s revelations from Allah himself conveyed by the angel Gabril or maybe Setan from time to time.
This uncorrupted Islamic science draws heavily on the natural remedies found in Prophet Muhammad’s daily surroundings and include camel piss and dates, which is basically what you have in the desert. The environment was also very inviting for flies, and the keen observations made by prophet Muhammad included the fact that one of the fly’s wings spreads disease and the other one provides the antidote! No medical researcher before or after the prophet ever came up with wisdom like that!
You may question prophet Muhammad as an authority in the medical field as he died a dreadful death being poisoned by a Jewess who he had pissed off by slaughtering her family. But this has nothing to do with medical science. Prophet Muhammad had predicted that he would die this way as the punishment of Allah if he didn’t convey the Koran truthfully. It appears that this was the only prediction of prophet Muhammad which came to fruition and that is ultimately what earned him the title of prophet!
OLD GUY says
I thought muslims were immune to C-19 so why the cleaning? Somebody is not telling the truth in muslim land.
Max says
I applaud the decision of the Islamic fundamentalists to continue observing religious practices of kissing holy shrines, as I cannot think of a better way of eliminating the religious fanatics.