People wearing face masks walk at a bazaar in Tonekabon, Iran, Nov. 24, 2020. (Xinhua/Ahmad Halabisaz)
-- Iran reports record-high 14,051 daily new cases;
-- Israel decides to reopen high schools;
-- Turkey adds 29,845 new cases, total infections rising to 481,198;
-- Morocco registers 4,592 new cases, tally reaching 345,276.
CAIRO, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Iran reported 14,051 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, shattering the record of daily cases again. Meanwhile, Israel decided to reopen high schools as the country added 718 new cases over the past 24 hours.
After seeing another day of record daily new infections, Iran's total COVID-19 cases have risen to 922,397.
Iran's health ministry said Friday that 2,245 of the newly infected had to be hospitalized and 406 more people died of the infectious diseases, which took the death toll to 47,095 in the country.
There are 640,065 patients who have recovered or been released from Iranian hospitals, but 5,860 still remain in critical condition, the ministry added.
Israeli high school students wearing face masks take part in the graduation exam amid the COVID-19 pandemic in the central Israeli city of Modiin, June 29, 2020. (Xinhua/Gil Cohen Magen)
In Israel, the special cabinet on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic decided on Friday to partly reopen high schools from Sunday.
Classes will be resumed only in cities and towns defined as "green" or "yellow," with a low morbidity level of the virus.
The gradual resumption of school studies in Israel began on Nov. 1, with the reopening of first and second-grade classes, and since then, fifth and sixth graders have also returned to school.
The total COVID-19 cases in Israel rose to 333,802 on Friday with 718 new cases added, according to the country's health ministry.
The death toll from the disease rose to 2,839 in Israel, with the addition of five new fatalities. And 321,346 people have recovered from the disease so far in Israel.
A sanitation worker in personal protective equipment conducts disinfection on a subway train in Ankara, Turkey, Nov. 19, 2020. (Xinhua/Mustafa Kaya)
Also in the day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey is obliged to take new measures to curb the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases and fatalities.
Speaking to reporters after Friday prayers in Istanbul, Erdogan noted that Turkey's Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board has been carrying out all kinds of preparations and works to restrain the pandemic.
"We are now obliged and will take measures in line with the steps taken by our health ministry," Erdogan said.
Turkey recorded on Friday 29,845 new COVID-19 cases, including 6,592 symptomatic patients.
The total number of COVID-19 patients in the country reached 481,198, said the ministry.
The death toll from the coronavirus in Turkey rose by 177 to 13,191, while the total recoveries climbed to 392,616 after 3,845 more patients recovered in the last 24 hours.
In Kuwait, the health ministry said the kingdom reported 329 new COVID-19 cases and two more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 141,876 and the death toll to 874.
The health ministry also announced the recovery of 553 more patients, taking the total recoveries in the country to 135,303.
Meanwhile, Qatar added 184 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 138,250. No new coronavirus-related death was reported in the country for the past 24 hours and the death toll remains at 237.
A student receives a temperature check before entering an exam site in Baghdad, Iraq on Sept. 1, 2020. (Xinhua)
Iraq is another country in the Middle East that has been seeing thousands of new cases on a daily basis. The country's health ministry registered on Friday 2,545 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nationwide infections to 547,215.
The ministry also reported 42 new deaths and 1,921 more recovered cases in the country, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 12,167 and the total recoveries have reached 476,297.
The ministry added that it has dispatched health teams to carry out tests for teachers and students across the country to ensure a safe start of the new semester.
Morocco on Friday reported 4,592 new COVID-19 cases, taking the number of infections in the country to 345,276.
The total number of recoveries from COVID-19 in Morocco increased to 294,036 after 4,228 new ones were added, the ministry of health said in a statement.
The death toll rose to 5,689 with 70 new fatalities during the last 24 hours, while 1,031 people are in intensive care units. ■
