2,271 Iranians are infected by the AIDS virus, according to latest figures released Sunday by the anti-AIDS campaign state committee, reported Iranian News Agency (IRNA).
The agency quoted, Bahram Yeganeh, head of the campaign, as saying that 309 are afflicted by the disease, 1,088 people are suffering from AIDS symptoms, while nearly 11,000 others are merely carriers who are infected by the virus.
Despite these figures, Yeganeh added, the disease has not yet become so widespread in Iran due to people's strong religious beliefs, IRNA quoted him as saying.
The first case of AIDS in Iran, a one-year-old boy who contracted the HIV virus through a blood transfusion, was recorded in 1985, said AFP.
The country has since banned blood imports.
In the 1990s, the Iranian government started an anti-AIDS information campaign and founded a resource center for people who are HIV-positive, said IRNA -- Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
