COVID-19 has infected 50 members of Iran’s 290-seat parliament, a senior MP revealed on Saturday, as the Omicron form spreads unchecked across the country.

In an interview with YJC, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s state television, MP Alireza Salimi stated that this week’s parliamentary session will be held in compliance with health laws.

Last April, Parliament was suspended for two weeks due to an epidemic among MPs. Several politicians died from the virus in the early days of the epidemic.

Iran has seen a surge in cases after a brief respite following mass vaccinations. In recent days it has reported an average of more than 30,000 new infections a day. However, the number of cases over the previous 24 hours was 23,130, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Iran, with a population of about 85 million, has reported more than 6.5 million infections and more than 132,500 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began.

More than 50 million people have received two doses of coronavirus vaccine, and more than 19 million have received three doses.