President Hassan Rouhani is facing criticism for reopening schools while the country continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic that has killed over 22,000 people so far.

In his latest speech Sept. 9 at a Cabinet meeting, Rouhani addressed some of the criticism he is facing by saying the health of students is a “priority” for the administration, but he said they do not want students “to be held back from their studies from six months or a year.” "This would be difficult on families,” said Rouhani.

He continued, “At the same time, there is nothing mandatory about this,” adding families did not have to choose in-person school if they did not want to. The other options for students are online learning and educational programming through state television. Rouhani, however, said the government prefers students to do in-person schooling. "Keeping a student imprisoned inside an apartment will also create problems,” he said.

Rouhani immediately faced criticism for reopening schools after his address at the beginning of the school year was given virtually rather than in person. Many questioned how it could be safe for schools to open when it apparently was not safe for the president to address schools and staff in person. Mahmoud Vaezi, Rouhani’s chief of staff, said the president was simply observing the health instructions and protocols that were determined by the National Headquarters for Combatting Coronavirus.