Many Tehran shops closed their doors and the Iranian capital's notoriously heavy traffic eased as new measures came into force aimed at reining in record coronavirus deaths.

The health ministry announced the deaths of a record 655 coronavirus patients in the preceding 24 hours, with more than 41,000 new cases recorded.

In total, the country of 83 million has seen upwards of 98,000 deaths from Covid-19, making it already the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, according to an AFP report.

The latest measures, which cover the entire country, include restrictions on driving between provinces until August 27 as well as the closure of government buildings, banks and non-essential shops until Saturday.