Iran, the Middle East's worst-affected country, has been hit hard by COVID-19 with nearly 70,000 confirmed cases and more than 4,000 deaths.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said US sanctions on Iran have made it impossible for the government to even buy medicines.

By order of the president, business will begin to reopen in Iran now, as the country finds itself unable to sustain a lockdown.

Al Jazeera's Zein Basravi reports from Tehran, Iran.