Coronavirus: UAE announces 883 new cases

Officials also recorded 389 new patient recoveries and more than 27,500 additional tests

Municipal workers disinfect the historic Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey. AFP

People complete their transactions in the civil status department after Jordan's public sector employees returned gradually to work in Amman. Reuters

Iraqi security forces deployed during the Eid Al Fitr holidays in Baghdad. AP Photo

A woman uses a phone to film a man playing with a girl by a statue of a lion in the centre of the West Bank city of Ramallah, after the Palestinian Authority announced an end to its two-month coronavirus lockdown. AFP

Employees from Fatih municipality disinfect the courtyard of the Suleymaniye Mosque on the last day of Eid Al Fitr in Istanbul, Turkey. Getty Images

A dragon sculpture decorates an empty fish sandwich boat with the Galata Tower in the background in Istanbul, Turkey. AFP

A Palestinian local zoo worker washes an ostrich with a hose at the premises in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP

A Palestinian local zoo worker handles Macaws at the premises in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP

A kite is being flown near the Jamal Abdel Nasser Great Mosque in the centre of the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah. AFP

Iraqi security forces stand guard at a checkpoint in Baghdad. AFP

Goods await sterilisation at the port of Umm Qasr, Basra, Iraq. AP Photo

People complete their transactions in the Civil Status Department after Jordan's public sector employees returned gradually to work in Amman. Reuters

A waiter prepares coffee at a cafe which reopened for take away only in Tunis, Tunisia. EPA

Royal gendarmes patrol to prevent citizens from visiting the beach in Harhoura, near the capital Rabat, Morocco. EPA

Health workers record taxi drivers' information prior to collecting swab samples from them in Rabat, Morocco. EPA

UAE officials announced a further 883 cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, bringing the country’s total to 31,969.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention said it conducted an additional 27,540 tests in the Emirates, just under the 28,000 carried out the previous day.

These new figures showed that over the previous 24 hours, 389 patients had recovered from the virus while two had died.

As of May 27, the UAE has recorded 16,371 recoveries and 255 deaths. Globally, there have now been 5.7 million cases of Covid-19, with 2.4m recoveries and more than 353,000 deaths.

The UAE has so far conducted more than 2m tests on residents. Only one patient, out of more than 15,000 active cases, is understood to be in a serious or critical condition.

"We want to clarify that a large number of cases are due to mixing and gatherings...thus we stress all must avoid gatherings and to avoid crowded places," said Dr Amna Al Dhahak.

"The next phase requires awareness, precautions and responsibility. Today, we are all responsible.

"Those who think the resumption of activities is an announcement of the end of this pandemic are mistaken.

"Each individual is responsible for their safety, the safety of their family and their surroundings by adhering to applying physical distancing, wearing face masks and also using PPE.

“Resuming business is very important... reopening does not mean lifting the precautionary measures, they are there to stay."

Earlier on Wednesday, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development commended the UAE's efforts in limiting the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

The OECD body made its remarks following a report compiled by the UAE's Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority, which detailed the strategic initiatives undertaken by different governmental organisations to limit the effect of the virus's spread on the UAE's healthcare system, its energy sector, schools and the delivery of government services.

"The Covid-19 crisis has bluntly reminded us that, as our countries form part of a global interconnected community, international co-operation has never been so important," said the OECD's director of global relations, Andreas Schaal.

"The UAE has proven to be an important and innovative partner, as we collectively strive to develop the most effective policies to address such an unprecedented crisis.

"Looking forward, we are convinced that the United Arab Emirates can play an important role in converting this crisis into an opportunity for the MENA region, and we welcome working with the UAE to make this possible.”