Iran has recorded a record number of coronavirus deaths in a single day, Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Lari said on Thursday.

In the last 24 hours, 221 people died from COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus, taking the total number of fatalities to 12,305.

Over the same period, 2,000 new infections were recorded, with the total number of cases rising to 250,458, Lari added.

Experts believe the spike in cases is due to the recent easing of coronavirus measures, which have prompted people to neglect health and safety precautions.