Iran reports 54 new coronavirus deaths, bringing the death toll 291

Iran confirmed 54 new deaths in the past 24 hours from the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, the highest single-day toll in the world since the epidemic started.

The new deaths bring the number in the Islamic Republic of those killed by the  virus to 291, said Kianoush Jahanpour, spokesperson for the health ministry, in a televised briefing.

He added that 881 new cases were confirmed, bringing the total count for the outbreak to 8,042.