IRAN ESTIMATES UP TO 25 MILLION VIRUS CASES SINCE OUTBREAK

TEHRAN, IRAN» Iran’s president on Saturday estimated as many as 25 million Iranians could have been infected with the coronavirus since the outbreak’s beginning, and he urged the public to take the pandemic seriously, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.

President Hassan Rouhani cited a new Iranian Health Ministry study in offering the unprecedentedly high number of infections. Officials have not explained what the report’s estimates are based on, and the study has not been made public. Rouhani also said he believes an additional 30-35 million people could be infected in coming months, again without citing the basis for his estimate. Iran’s population is about 81 million.

Iran has seen the worst outbreak in the Middle East, with more than 270,000 confirmed cases and at least 13,979 deaths.

The president’s remarks show that questions remain over the country’s official figures from the outbreak, even after the authorities publicly acknowledged its importance.

Fire hits cathedral in French city of Nantes. A fire broke out inside the cathedral of the western French city of Nantes in the early hours of Saturday, but the authorities quickly said there was no comparison with the blaze that engulfed Notre Dame in Paris last year, despite ominous images of flames and smoke coming from the building.

More than 100 firefighters were sent to the cathedral in Nantes after they were alerted shortly before 8 a.m., but the “violent fire” was controlled within hours, according to Gen. Laurent Ferlay, the head of the firefighters in the Loire Atlantique area, which includes the city.

Ferlay said the fire had broken out near the organ of the cathedral and had destroyed the instrument entirely. The authorities have opened an arson investigation.

Father François Renaud, who is in charge of the cathedral, said stained-glass windows from the 16th century had burst in the fire.

Oakland will pay $32.7 million to settle Ghost Ship fire lawsuits. The city of Oakland, Calif., has agreed to pay nearly $33 million to settle lawsuits filed on behalf of the victims of a fire that killed 36 people in a two-story converted warehouse in 2016.

The families of 32 of the victims who died when flames consumed the structure, which housed an artist collective known as the Ghost Ship, will receive $23.5 million, the city said in a statement. A survivor, Sam Maxwell, who the city said lives “with severe, lifelong injuries and major medical expenses,” will receive $9.2 million.

The blaze, on Dec. 2, 2016, was one of the worst structure fires in recent U.S. history. People had gathered on the second floor of the warehouse for an electronic music dance party when the fire started. The building did not have a permit to host parties or operate as a residence, and most of the people who were living there were doing so in violation of zoning laws.

Police urged to apologize after officer knelt on man’s neck. LONDON» The lawyer for a Black man who repeatedly asked a white officer to “get off my neck” as he was pinned to the sidewalk during an arrest in London told a court Saturday that the encounter echoed the treatment of George Floyd and called for a police apology.

The Metropolitan Police have suspended the arresting officer, who knelt on the neck of the detainee while he was handcuffed and lying on the ground. A second officer, who assisted in the arrest Thursday, was removed from operational duty pending an investigation into what the force’s deputy commissioner, Steve House, called an “extremely disturbing” episode.

Images of the arrest, captured on video, were a troubling reminder of the killing of Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis in May.