RIYADH — For the second consecutive day, the number of coronavirus infections in the Kingdom hovered over the 350-mark on Saturday. The Ministry of Health reported 382 new cases and five new virus-related deaths, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Kingdom to 4,033 and the number of fatalities to 52. There were 364 new cases and three deaths on Friday. However, the number of daily confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia has not reached the peak yet, and cases continue to rise at a rapid rate. Out of the 382 cases, 131 were detected in Makkah, 95 in Madinah, 76 in Riyadh, and 50 in Jeddah, Ministry of Health spokesman Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdel Ali told a press conference here. The new cases were recorded in people in different age groups, indicating that while experts have said the elderly are more vulnerable, everyone is susceptible to the disease, the spokesman said. In recent days, 70 to 80 percent of the cases reported were of non-citizens, he added. A total of 720 people have recovered from the coronavirus in Saudi Arabia so far. Minister of Health Tawfiq Al-Rabiah had said earlier this week that four different studies showed that the number of coronavirus cases in the Kingdom could reach between 10,000 to 200,000 within weeks. The ministry spokesman emphasized the urgent need for citizens and residents to remain at home and maintain social distancing practices to ensure that the virus does not spread further.
