170,000 COVID-19 tests

TDT, agencies | Manama

Bahrain is fast expanding its extensive and aggressive testing strategy to contain the coronavirus cases with the health authority here performing more than 170,000 tests as of yesterday.

The authority, on its twitter handle, said it performed around 6,206 tests in the past 24 hours to bring the total number of tested people here to 170,719. The intense testing strategy also resulted in the ministry detecting 205 more active COVID-19 cases yesterday in the Kingdom, of which 138 are expatriate workers, and 67 are contacts of active cases.

With this, the total number of active COVID-19 cases in Bahrain has reached 2369, of which 2367 are stable, and 2 in critical condition. As of yesterday, the total number of coronavirus cases in the Kingdom is 4404, which is also one of the lowest among GCC member states.

Bahrain also reported 27 additional recoveries bringing the total number of recovered patients discharged from isolation and treatment centres in the Kingdom to 2,027.

The total number of cases per 1 million population in the Kingdom is 2,588, and the total tests conducted per 1 m population is 100,330. The number of cases in the six Gulf Arab states has risen steadily to almost 86,000, with 486 deaths, despite containment measures including curfews, the grounding of passenger flights and the closure of most public venues.

Saudi cases exceed 35,000

The number of coronavirus cases in Saudi Arabia exceeded 35,000 yesterday. Officials reported 1,701 new cases, taking the total to 35,432. The country has recorded a daily average of around 1,500 new cases over the past week.

Despite the rising number of cases, the kingdom’s death toll has remained relatively low. It increased by 10 on Friday to 229. Saudi Arabia on Thursday formed a police unit to monitor violations of its coronavirus lockdown rules and banned gatherings of more than five people, according to state news agency SPA, citing hefty fines for any violations.

Fines of up to 100,000 riyals ($27,000) will be handed down to groups larger than one family gathering in public and private spaces, including homes, construction sites and shops. The same rule applies to parties, weddings and funerals. Saudi Arabia recorded its first COVID-19 infection on March 2, several weeks after the initial outbreak in Asia.

20-day ‘total curfew’ in Kuwait

Kuwait will enact a “total curfew” from 4 pm on Sunday through to May 30 to help to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, the Information Ministry said on Twitter yesterday. Further details of the curfew will be announced soon, it said.

Kuwait on April 20 expanded a nationwide curfew to 16 hours a day, from 4 pm to 8 am, and extended a suspension of work in the public sector, including government ministries, until May 31. On Friday the Gulf state announced 641 new coronavirus cases and three deaths, bringing its total number of confirmed cases to 7,208, with 47 deaths.

In UAE, the number of virus cases almost touched 17,000 yesterday with the kingdom reporting additional 553 cases. Health authorities there also reported nine more deaths yesterday bringing the total number of deaths to 174.

3,837 people recovered from the disease. Oman’s virus infection cases continue to remain lowest at 3,112, with it recording 154 new cases yesterday. The total toll is 16.