2 expats die of MERS in Taif, Al-Qunfudah

February 3, 2018

Riyadh, Feb 3: Two have died out of seven new cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) during the past six days, the Ministry of Health announced Thursday.

Confirming the deaths, an official from the ministry said that the deceased were two expatriate men, 60 and 50 years of age, from Taif and Al-Qunfudah respectively. He said both had been suffering from previous illnesses.

During the past seven days, the ministry has reported seven new cases in Riyadh, Hail, Al-Qunfudah, Tabuk, Buraidah, and Taif.

Since July 2012, a total of 1,785 patients have been infected by MERS-CoV in all parts of the Kingdom. They included 727 deaths, 1,047 recoveries and 11 patients currently under treatment.

Dr. Zakir Hussain, a medical specialist told Arab News that the disease becomes more serious due to patient negligence. “They should immediately visit their doctors when they have a continuous high fever coupled with a runny nose or cold, or chest infection.

He said those who suffer from chronic diseases are easy targets and it affects people who have less immunity against diseases. He added that those who died were suffering from previous illnesses.

MERS-CoV causes a severe infection in humans resulting in a high mortality rate and has proven the ability to transmit between humans. So far, they observed non-sustained human-to-human transmission has occurred mainly in health care environments.

Urging its member states to conduct regular surveillance for respiratory infections, the World Health Organization (WHO) has advised health officials to carefully review any unusual patterns.

People are encouraged to follow the basics of personal and food hygiene practices, and also avoid drinking raw camel milk or camel urine, or eating meat that has not been properly cooked, WHO said, stressing that washing hands after touching animals is imperative to avoid infections.

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Agencies
February 5,2020

Paris, Feb 5: Saudi Arabia has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu virus on a poultry farm, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Tuesday, February 4.

The outbreak, which occurred in the central Sudair region, killed 22,700 birds, the OIE said, citing a report from the Saudi agriculture ministry.

The other 385,300 birds in the flock were slaughtered, it said.

The case was the first outbreak of the H5N8 virus in Saudi Arabia since July 2018.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

Kuwait, Aug 2: Kuwait has barred entry of foreign passengers from over 30 countries including India and China.

A circular from the Director General Civil Aviation, State of Kuwait directed all airlines operating at Kuwait International Airport to adhere to the instructions in this regard.

"Based on the decision of the Health Authority in State of Kuwait, no foreign passenger coming from the down listed countries will be allowed to enter the State of Kuwait," the circular read.

These include- India, Iran, China, Brazil, Colombia, Armenia, Bangladesh, Philippines, Syria, Spain, Singapore, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Iraq, Mexico, Indonesia, Chile, Pakistan, Egypt, Lebanon, Hong Kong, Italy, North Macedonia, Moldova, Panama, Beirut ,Serbia Montenegro, Dominican Republic and Kosovo.

The circular stated that such restriction will also include the passengers were present 14 days before the date of travel until further notice.

The ban was announced the same day Kuwait began a partial resumption of commercial flights according to Khaleej Times, which quoted authorities stating that Kuwait International Airport would run at about 30 per cent capacity from Saturday, gradually increasing in coming months.

According to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University, Kuwait has reported 67,448 cases of coronavirus while the fatalities related to the virus stand at 453.

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News Network
March 28,2020

Mar 28: Just hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the Abu Dhabi crown prince on the Coronavirus Pandemic, India “thanked the UAE authorities for accommodating the 19 Indian nationals who were stuck at Dubai airport for past several days”.

The Indian mission in Dubai tweeted, “They got stranded due to various restrictions to deal with Covid-19 pandemic. Hotel rooms have been given to them inside the airport. Our Consulate had been in constant touch with the Indian nationals and UAE and Indian authorities. We had also provided some financial help to enable our stranded passengers to buy food. The situation was tough due to the pandemic situation.”

During their conversation last evening, Abu Dhabi crown prince Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan had “assured Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the welfare of the over two million Indians living in UAE and contributing to its economy”. PM Modi “thanked the Crown Prince for his personal attention to the health and safety of Indian expatriates in the present situation”.    

A statement issued late on Thursday night by the MEA said, “The two leaders exchanged information and views on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the situation in their respective countries, as well as the steps being taken by their Governments. They agreed that the next few weeks would be crucial to control the spread of the virus, and required concerted and coordinated efforts by all countries. In this context, they appreciated the organisation of a Virtual Summit among G20 Leaders earlier in the day, to discuss the pandemic.

Both leaders emphasised the importance they attach to the strength and richness of the bilateral relationship. They agreed to maintain regular consultations between their officials in the present situation, particularly to ensure continuity of logistical supply lines.”

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