RIYADH – Saudi Arabia has so far been not affected by new Coronavirus (COVID-19) and is exerting all efforts to prevent the entry of the epidemic into the country with regular follow-ups and implementation of precautionary measures, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted authorities as saying on Saturday. But, elsewhere in the region, new cases of the virus have been detected with the situation turning grim in Iran which reported a surge in new cases as the number of deaths jumped to 43. Tehran also dismissed as "rumors" a report the real toll was much higher. Iran's health ministry reported nine new deaths and a 53 percent jump in infections over the previous 24 hours, taking the overall totals to 43 deaths among 593 cases. Citing unnamed sources in Iran's health system, the BBC's Persian-language service said on Friday that at least 210 people had died in the COVID-19 outbreak. Most of the dead were in Qom or Tehran, the London-based broadcaster said. Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour accused foreign media of spreading misinformation about the outbreak. Qatar, meanwhile, has confirmed its first case of Coronavirus, state media reported Saturday, after a 36-year-old Qatari man who was evacuated to Doha from Iran tested positive. Qatar repatriated a number of its citizens from Iran and confined them to a 14-day period of quarantine, the government said. Gulf countries have announced a raft of measures to cut links with Iran to prevent the coronavirus spreading, after infections emerged among people returning from pilgrimages to the republic. Saudi Arabia on Friday barred citizens from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes Qatar, from entering the cities of Makkah and Madinah amid fears over Coronavirus. In Riyadh, the follow-up committee set up to tackle COVID-19 has appealed to all to make use of Number 937 on any questions on Coronavirus. It has stressed that information should be sought only from official sources and the public should not fall prey to any unsubstantiated reports. The committee held a meeting on Saturday under the chairmanship of the Minister of Health Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabiah. It was attended by members of the committee affiliated to ministries of defense, energy, interior, the National Guard, health, foreign affairs, finance, media, commerce, investment, Haj and Umrah, and education. Representatives of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), the Saudi Red Crescent Authority, Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), Customs General Authority, Ministry of Tourism, and the National Center for Preventing and Combating Disease (Saudi CDC) also took part in the meeting. The meeting reviewed the latest global developments, evaluated the current situation, and followed up the recommendations made during the previous meetings to prevent the virus. The committee also reviewed the global situation and took a number of measures to prevent the entry of Coronavirus into the Kingdom.
