Riyadh, Apr 25: Saudi Arabia announced nine deaths and 1,197 new cases of the COVID-19 virus on Saturday.
Of these cases, 120 were recorded in Madinah, 364 in Makkah, 271 in Jeddah, 170 in Riyadh and 43 in Dammam.
The number of people who had recovered from the coronavirus in the Kingdom increased to 2,214 after 165 patients were reported to have recovered.
A total of 136 people have died of the disease in the Kingdom so far.
Abu Dhabi, Jun 2: The United Arab Emirates on Monday recorded 635 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of infections in the country to 35,192, the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention said in a statement carried by state news agency WAM.
The new cases were detected after the health authorities conducted 30,147 additional COVID-19 tests citizens and residents.
The ministry also announced that 406 more patients have fully recovered after receiving the necessary medical care, raising the total number of recoveries in the country to 18,338.
The announcement was made during the regular media briefing held in Abu Dhabi, wherein Dr. Amna Al Dahak Al Shamsi, official spokesperson for the UAE government, provided an update on coronavirus-related developments and measures taken to mitigate its impact.
During the briefing, Dr. Al Shamsi also announced the death of two patients from COVID-19, taking the total number of deaths in the country to 266.
"The number of COVID-19 cases still receiving treatment now stands at 16,588 from different nationalities," she added, noting that more than 650,000 COVID-19 tests have been conducted over the past two weeks.
"Since the onset of the crisis, the UAE has focused on select segments of society, primarily the elderly and patients with chronic diseases, in order to ensure they survive the crisis," she added.
"We believe it is particularly morally important to support and stand by them, provide them with their daily needs, and keep them from harm’s way," she added.
Dr. Al Shamsi asserted that all precautionary measures announced, including the updated fines and penalties, will be enforced against violators, including citizens and residents.
"The law does not differentiate between citizens and residents. We are living in one homeland, which is for all of us," she continued.
"Your safety and health are a priority. We must comply with all precautionary measures. Though restrictions have been relaxed, caution must continue to be exercised."
Dr. Al Shamsi also warned, "Recklessness may undermine the efforts made by our frontline defenders. It is the responsibility of every individual to support protective efforts to ensure the safety of all."
Dubai, Mar 23: The United Arab Emirates announced on Monday it will temporarily suspend all passenger and transit flights amid the novel coronavirus outbreak.
The Emirati authorities "have decided to suspend all inbound and outbound passenger flights and the transit of airline passengers in the UAE for two weeks as part of the precautionary measures taken to curb the spread of the COVID-19", reported the official state news agency, WAM.
It said the decision -- which is subject to review in two weeks -- will take effect in 48 hours, adding: "Cargo and emergency evacuation flights would be exempt."
The UAE, whose international airports in Abu Dhabi and Dubai are major hubs, announced on Friday its first two deaths from the COVID-19 disease, having reported more than 150 cases so far.
Monday's announcement came hours after Dubai carrier Emirates announced it would suspend all passenger flights by March 25.
But the aviation giant then reversed its decision, saying it "received requests from governments and customers to support the repatriation of travellers" and will continue to operate passenger flights to 13 destinations.
Emirates had said it will continue to fly to the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Australia, South Africa, the United States and Canada.
"We continue to watch the situation closely, and as soon as things allow, we will reinstate our services," said the airline's chairman and CEO, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum.
Gulf countries have imposed various restrictions to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic, particularly in the air transport sector.
The UAE has stopped granting visas on arrival and forbidden foreigners who are legal residents but are outside the country from returning.
Cairo, May 20: A senior Kuwaiti lawmaker has called for imposing a tax on expatriates’ remittances to shore up the country’s finances.
MP Khalil Al Saleh, the head of the parliament’s Human Resources Committee, has presented a draft law on the proposed tax to the legislature.
“Imposing fees on expatriates’ transfers will have a role in improving the state's revenues and diversify sources of income,” he told Al Rai newspaper.
Migrant workers transfer about 4.2 billion dinars annually from Kuwait, he added, citing figures from Kuwait’s Central Bank.
“This system is in effect in most countries of the world and in more than one Gulf country. Expats there have not objected to it. Allowing this money to exit the country is very dangerous and has a direct effect on economy,” MP Al Saleh said.
“We do not target brotherly expats because imposing symbolic fees on financial transfers will not affect their money, but will have a positive effect on the state’s sources,” he said. “This has become a necessity after the money transferred outside Kuwait has reached 4.2 billion dinars annually without the state [Kuwait] making any benefit from this.”
Foreign workers make up 3.3 million of Kuwait’s 4.6 million population.
Several Kuwaiti public figures have recently pushed for redrawing the demographic imbalance in the country, accusing expatriates of straining health facilities and increasing the Covid-19 threat.
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