Recent Rise in Coronavirus Infections: Saudi Health Ministry

The Saudi Ministry of Health announced that it has detected an increase in the rate of infection with the Coronavirus by 300 percent, and that global studies indicate that more than 80 percent of the effects related to controlling the pandemic are related to social activities, and these numbers keep pace with the studies that have worked in the Kingdom on the recently observed cases; especially family events.

A spokesman for the Saudi Ministry of Health, Dr.Muhammad Al-Abd Al-Aali, said during a press conference that an increase in the trend of critical cases by 35 percent had been observed, and he confirmed that critical and active cases had returned to the rise, due to gatherings in restaurants and wedding parties, and many misbehaviors in those events and in public places.

The spokesman added that eradicating the epidemic requires adherence to preventive measures, saying: “If we adhere to the measures, the epidemic curve will tend to flatten, then control, and this is what we hope for.”

Dr. Al-Abd Al-Aali renewed the warning against gatherings in public places and the lack of respect for social distancing, stressing the necessity of leaving a safe distance, wearing a mask and washing hands.

On the developments of the anti-virus vaccine, the spokesman said: “Scientists are currently focusing on 3 mutations of the virus, especially the patterns, severity of the disease, and the effectiveness of the vaccine.” He added that the “AstraZeneca” vaccine is one of the most widely used vaccines, and its results are promising. He said that 443,153 doses were given in the kingdom.

For his part, the spokesman for the Saudi Ministry of Interior, Lieutenant Colonel Talal Al-Shalhoub, said that many violations of the precautionary measures were observed in various regions of the Kingdom, and that an increase in the precautionary measures violations was 72 percent, stressing that “the decision to reinstate the curfew in the Kingdom is in the hands of society.”

He added that many preventive measures have been taken in the regions of the Kingdom, by closing entertainment centers, cinemas, game venues, halls and sports centers.

And he warned everyone who works to spread rumors and spread false information through social media about the Coronavirus, which would cause panic, to impose a fine not exceeding one million riyals or imprisonment for a period of not less than a year and not more than 5 years, or together.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Interior affirmed the continuation of the procedures for controlling violators of procedures and violators of the regulation on limiting gatherings, not wearing a mask, and adhering to social distance. He said, “We urge everyone in the event of witnessing any violation to take the initiative to report it to (999) in all regions of the Kingdom, and (911) in the regions of Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Riyadh.”

Lt. Col. Al-Shalhoub said, “We call on everyone to feel their responsibilities and appreciate what the generous leadership offers to preserve the safety of the inhabitants of this blessed land.”

In addition, Saudi Arabia recorded a relative decrease in the number of daily infections with the Coronavirus, at 317 cases today, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Kingdom to 370,278 cases.

The daily briefing for monitoring the cases of the virus mentioned 5 deaths, bringing the total deaths in Saudi Arabia with the implications of infection with the virus to 6,402 deaths.

He added that 278 new recoveries were recorded, which brings the total number of similar recoveries to 361,515 cases.

Active cases totaled 2,361; of these, 408 are critical cases receiving intensive care.