People walk in a cemetery, south of Tehran, Iran, Oct. 22, 2020. Photo: Majid Asgaripour / WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters.

Iran on Tuesday reported 6,968 new coronavirus cases and 346 deaths in the past 24 hours, its highest daily tally, pushing the death toll in the hardest-hit Middle Eastern country to 33,299.

Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari told state media that the new cases brought the country’s total number of identified cases to 581,824.