CORRECTS FIRST NAME TO ESHAQ: FILE - In this April 15, 2017 file photo, Iranian Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri waves to media while registering his candidacy for the May 19, 2017, presidential elections, at the Interior Ministry, in Tehran, Iran. Jahangiri and two other Cabinet members have contracted the new coronavirus, semiofficial Fars News Agency reported Wednesday, March 11, 2020. The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)
March 12, 2020
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Iran asks for billions in loans as virus death toll climbs
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran said Thursday it asked the International Monetary Fund for a $5 billion loan to fight the coronavirus, the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that it has sought such assistance, in a staggering admission of how fragile its economy has become amid the epidemic and punishing U.S. sanctions.