DUBAI — Bahrain reported on Thursday 116 new coronavirus cases, most of which were among expatriate workers, brining the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection in the country up to 3,040 cases, while the death toll stood at eight fatalities, according to the Ministry of Health. Out of the 116 new cases, 109 were expatriate workers, six contracted the COVID-19 virus after coming into contact with active cases and one was travel related. The number of recovered patients in Bahrain reached 1,500, i.e. 49 percent of the total number of infections confirmed in the country. The government has so far conducted more than 129,000 coronavirus tests. Bahrain's national carrier Gulf Air said on Thursday, it has assisted in the importation of nine tons of medication, medical equipment and hygienic products to help contain the spread of the coronavirus in the country. Gulf Air has also operated several repatriation flights to bring back Bahraini nationals from Iran during the month of April, with flights on April 30, 28, 26, 23, 22, 20, 19, 16, 13, 9, 6, and 2. The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sheikha Rana bint Isa al-Khalifa, had said on Tuesday that the government repatriated 3,800 Bahraini citizens from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, Russia, Turkey, Pakistan and Iran. Repatriation of Bahrainis will continue until mid-May, she added. Also, the Chief Executive of the Labor Market Regulatory Authority, Ausamah bin Abdullah al-Absi, said on Tuesday that the government provided expatriate workers holding various work permits, such as the flexible work permit, the employer work permit (employment category), enrolled (family of an expatriate worker), and domestic workers, a grace period from April 1 2020 to December 31 2020, to correct their permit status. — Al Arabiya English
