MESOPOTAMIA  NEWS : Mossad head says Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon hiding true coronavirus figures: report

i24NEWS – ISRAEL   April 24, 2020, 11:59 AM – Yossi Cohen cited as saying actual figures for the four countries “significantly higher” than reported

Yossi Cohen, head of the Mossad (Israel’s foreign intelligence service), said Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon are reporting distorted figures on coronavirus infections and deaths, Hebrew media are reporting.

“In Lebanon, Iraq and Syria, the number of infections is high, and they are lying about it,” Cohen asserted during a government briefing Thursday, as reported by Channel 13.

Cohen also called the figures coming out of Iran into question, saying that the numbers he had at hand were “significantly higher.”

His statement echoes those of US officials, who also repeatedly questioned the statistics coming from Iran, which reported 87,026 cases and 5,481 deaths.

In Iraq, the official tally stands at 1,677 confirmed cases and 83 deaths. However, Reuters earlier reported that the actual toll could be significantly higher, prompting fury in Baghdad, which suspended the agency’s license.

In Lebanon, the official count is 688 cases and 22 deaths, while in Syria, 42 cases and 3 deaths have been reported this far.