Riyadh, May 14: The Ministry of Health said yesterday that it had stopped the spread of coronavirus from Al-Ahsa in the Eastern Province to other parts of the Kingdom.
The virus had reached Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, but not further incidences have been reported.
“No new cases of the virus were found in any part of the Kingdom,” Dr. Ziad Al-Memish, undersecretary to the Ministry of Health for Public Health, told Arab News.
So far, the Kingdom has reported 24 cases of the virus, including nine fatal cases. The recent cases included two men aged 48 and 58.
The first patient, a 48-year-old man with multiple coexisting medical conditions, became ill on April 29, and is in stable condition, while the latter fully recovered and was discharged from the hospital May 3 after falling ill on April 6. Al-Memish said the ministry has taken all precautions against the spread of the disease.
However, he added that in keeping with the transparency policy, the ministry would keep the public informed of all developments in this matter.
Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of WHO’s Health Security and Environment, who visited the Eastern Province on Saturday, said the Kingdom has taken the coronavirus situation seriously and the Saudi Ministry of Health has initiated public health actions, including intensifying surveillance, initiating investigations and ensuring control measures are in place.
“One of the reasons why more cases have been identified in the Kingdom may be because they have gone ahead to strengthen their surveillance system and lab capacity and network,” he said. “We know that the disease is caused by a virus from a group called coronaviruses.”
He said one member of the coronavirus family is the SARS virus. This new virus is not the SARS virus. He said the virus has infected people since 2012.
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Coronavirus is ‘not spreading’
May 14, 2013
King imposes curfew across Saudi Arabia to contain COVID-19
Agencies
March 23,2020
Riyadh, Mar 23: King Salman on Sunday issued an order imposing a curfew across Saudi Arabia from Monday evening to control the spread of the COVID-19 disease.
A royal court statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said the curfew will start at 7 p.m. until 6 a.m. every day for 21 days from the evening of 28 Rajab 1441 in the Hijri calendar, equivalent to March 23, 2020 in the Gregorian calendar.
King Salman's order followed an announcement by the Health Ministry of 119 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, raising the total number in the Kingdom to 511.
The order enjoins citizens and residents alike to stay in their homes during the curfew hours for their own safety.
The statement said the Ministry of Interior will undertake the necessary measures to implement the curfew, and all civil and military authorities are ordered to cooperate fully.
Exclusions
A subsequent statement issued by the Ministry of Interior and carried by SPA said those excluded from the curfew are workers from the following vital industries and government services:
• Food sector (points of sale) such as catering and supermarkets And poultry and vegetable shops, meat, bakeries, food factories and laboratories;
• Health sector, such as pharmacies and the like, medical clinics (dispensaries), hospitals, laboratories, factories, factories and materials and medical devices;
• Media sector in its various means;
• Transportation sector, such as those transporting goods, parcels, customs clearance, warehouses, warehouses, logistics services, supply chains for the health sector, the food sector, and port operations;
• E-commerce activities such as those working in the electronic procurement applications for the excluded activities and those working in the delivery applications of the excluded activities;
• Accommodation services activities such as hotels and furnished apartments;
• Energy sector such as gas stations and emergency services for the electric company;
• Financial services and insurance sector, such as direct accidents (Najm), urgent health insurance services (approvals), and other insurance services;
• Telecom sector as Internet and communication network operators;
• Water sector, such as the water company emergency services and home drinking water delivery service (graying).
Additional exclusions
The Interior Ministry statement also said movement during the curfew time will be allowed for security, military and health cars, government regulatory services vehicles, and activity vehicles excluded in the vital industries and services mentioned above.
Delivery services through smart device applications (express delivery services) during the curfew will be allowed for food and drug needs and other essential goods and services that are excluded and delivered to homes. Excluded activities can be known by calling the toll-free number in all regions of the Kingdom 999, except for the Makkah Al-Mukarramah region, which is called at 911.
Muezzins will be allowed to access mosques to lift the call to prayer at the time of the curfew.
Workers in diplomatic missions and international organizations and the like residing in the Diplomatic Quarter will be allowed to move during the curfew period to and from their business headquarters in the neighborhood.
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Coronavirus: Air Arabia flights to transport UAE nationals from India
News Network
April 20,2020
Sharjah, Apr 20: Air Arabia announced on Monday it will operate new repatriation flights from four cities in India to Sharjah carrying UAE nationals back home.
The special flights will operate from Mumbai and Delhi to Sharjah International Airport on April 20 while special flights will operate from Kochi and Hyderabad to Sharjah International Airport on April 22.
Air Arabia remains committed to bring stranded citizens back home as well as supporting requests to operate repatriation flights and is working closely with UAE authorities in this regard, the airline said.
Air Arabia announced earlier that it’s operating a mix of repatriation flights as well as cargo flights during the month of April to multiple destinations.
Further information about the repatriation and cargo flights is available on the website or can be obtained by contacting the Air Arabia call centre on 06 5580000 or respective travel agent.
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Trail of death and devastation as massive explosion rocks Lebanon's capital
Agencies
August 4,2020
Beirut, Aug 4: A massive explosion has shaken the Lebanese capital of Beirut, with a very high number of casualties expected.
A warehouse at the Beirut Port caught fire on Tuesday afternoon, triggering a huge explosion, Lebanon’s official National News Agency (NNA) reported.
Several smaller explosions were heard before the bigger one occurred.
Abbas Ibrahim, the head of Lebanon’s General Security, said that “highly explosive materials” confiscated earlier had been stored at the site.
Footage shared on social media captured the moment of the bigger explosion, with a colossal shock wave seen traveling fast across several hundreds of meters and shrouding the area in thick smoke.
The blast left enormous material damage to the surrounding buildings and structures. But it was not immediately known how big an area was affected.
There was also no immediate casualty count. Graphic amateur video from the scene showed bodies strewn on the ground, with their clothes blown off.
The NNA said rescue operations were underway. Ambulances were seen heading toward the scene in central Beirut.
Lebanese LBC television channel quoted Lebanon’s Health Minister Hamad Hasan as saying that the blast had caused a “very high number of injuries” and “extensive damage.”
Beirut Governor Marwan Abboud said an unspecified number of firefighters dispatched to extinguish the initial fire had been killed in the explosion.
“As they were putting out the fire, the explosion took place and we’ve [lost them],” he said, breaking down on live TV.
The explosion comes at a time when the Arab country is passing through its worst economic and financial crisis in decades, and amid rising tensions with Israel.
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