Iran will file a legal complaint with the International Court of Justice against US sanctions on its medical and health care sectors, according to an Iranian Health Ministry official.

The regime was blocked by the United States from access to life support systems and medical supplies in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, said Vice Minister of Iran’s Ministry of Health and Medical Education Taher Mouhebati to state news agency IRNA at a virtual press conference. Documents for the suit have already been handed over to the vice president for legal affairs.

The announcement follows the resignation of Iran’s Deputy Health Minister Reza Malekzadeh on Friday after accusing his boss, Saeed Namaki, of mismanaging the pandemic and causing numerous casualties.

Iran has struggled to contain the spread of the virus since February when the first cases were reported in the city of Qom. The country has been the hardest hit in the region with the number of fatalities and is eighth in the world in total deaths. On Monday, it confirmed 453 more coronavirus-related fatalities, pushing the national death toll to over 45,000. Ministry spokesperson Sima Sadat Lari warned that most of Iran’s 31 provinces were declared red zones, with high risks of transmission.