Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia detects 1,132 new cases

Saudi authorities have intensified screening in worker camps and populated areas

Deserted streets in Makkah as Saudi Arabia imposes strict measures to control the spread of coronavirus infections. AFP

Saudi Arabia is conducting intensive screening for Covid-19 infection in densely populated areas and worker compounds, the health ministry said on Saturday as it announced 1,132 new cases detected in the preceding 24 hours.

A health ministry spokesman said five patients died in the same period, raising the kingdom's death toll from the disease to 92, while 208 had recovered.

The spokesman said the new cases took the number of confirmed Covid-19 infections in the kingdom to 8,274, the highest among Gulf states. There are currently 6,853 active cases and 78 in critical condition, while the total numbers of patients who have recovered is 1,329.

The health ministry plans to expand its screening programme across the kingdom, with teams working round the clock, according to a statement released on the state Saudi Press Agency.

The Saudi interior ministry meanwhile announced that two more areas of the kingdom had been placed under isolation to prevent the spread of the virus. The total ban on the entering or leaving the districts of Al Faisaliah and Al Fadhliyah in Al Ihsa governorate will remain in force until further notice, it said.

In Oman, health authorities announced 111 new cases detected since Friday.

The Omani health ministry said 33 of the new cases were among Omanis.

The sultanate has detected 1,180 Covid-19 cases so far, of which six were fatal, the ministry said.

The number of fatalities in Kuwait rose to six on Saturday with the death of a 68-year-old Bengali man after nine days in intensive care, a health ministry spokesman said.

Dr Abdullah Al Sanad said 93 more cases had been detected since Friday, raising the country's total to 1,751.

There are 1,465 Covid-19 patients being treated in hospital, of whom 34 are in intensive care with 18 in critical condition.

The ministry earlier announced the recovery of 22 more patients, bring the total number of recoveries to 280.

The number of coronavirus cases in Qatar rose to 5,008 with 345 new infections detected since Friday, according to figures posted on the health ministry's Twitter account.

There are 4,490 Covid-19 cases still under treatment and 510 recoveries, including 46 since Friday, while one more patient died, raising the death toll to eight.