DUBAI: Iran has released approximately 70,000 prisoners because of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, Iranian judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi said on Monday, according to Mizan, the news site of the judiciary.

"The release of the prisoners, to the point where it doesn't create insecurity in society ... will continue," he said.

Raisi did not specify if or when those released would need to return to jail.

Iran says the new coronavirus has killed another 43 people, pushing death toll to 237 amid 7,161 confirmed cases.

The Health Ministry announced the new figure at a news conference Monday. There are over 7,640 confirmed cases of the virus across the wider Mideast.

It comes as Mideast stock markets have significantly dropped amid the outbreak and oil prices falling by levels unseen since the 1991 Gulf War.