How favoritism trumped science in Iran's covid response

Today on Post Reports, how government officials in Iran cut corners to expedite a yet-unproven vaccine developed by a company close to the supreme leader. 

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Last year, as Iranian regulators considered endorsing a locally developed coronavirus vaccine, a top health official issued a warning, saying the test results were insufficient, and the vaccine’s approval could undermine efforts to contain the deadly spread of covid throughout Iran.

But the vaccine had influential backers – it was the highly touted project of a company called Barkat, part of a corporate empire close to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Business reporter Yeganeh Torbati reports that government officials cut corners to expedite the yet-unproven vaccine, even as the supreme leader barred the import of some Western-made vaccines, and imports of other vaccines encountered delays.