Iran on Wednesday said new deaths from the novel coronavirus remained in double figures for the second day in a row.

Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said 94 deaths from the COVID-19 disease were recorded in the past 24 hours, bringing the overall toll to 4,777.

Another 1,512 people tested positive for the illness.

That took the total number of infections to 76,389, Jahanpour said, noting that 49,933 of those hospitalized had recovered and been discharged.

Earlier on Tuesday, 98 deaths were recorded.

As many countries, Iran has been struggling since mid-February to contain the spread of the virus, with US sanctions making the mission harder.

Even more, Tehran has requested a $5 billion emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund to battle the coronavirus outbreak. But the United States, which effectively holds a veto at the IMF, has blocked the request.

Source: Agencies