Additional cases of novel coronavirus observed in Saudi Arabia

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The World Health Organization

The Ministry of Health of Saudi Arabia has informed the World Health Organization (WHO) that there are three more laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with the novel coronavirus (nCoV).

NCoV is a respiratory ailment that appeared in September 2012 in a previously health 49 year old Qatari male who had travelled to Saudi Arabia before becoming sick.

The Qatari case was a near clinical match to the case of a Saudi man who had died of novel coronavirus earlier in 2012.

Glenn Thomas is with the World Health Organization.

“The Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia has informed WHO two of the patients died on Friday the 3rd of May and one is currently in critical condition. The Saudi Arabian Government is conducting on-going investigations into this outbreak, which is linked to one health care facility in Al-hazah. Since the beginning of May, a total of 13 patients have been reported from this outbreak, of which seven have died.”

To date, Glenn Thomas says WHO has been informed of a global total of 30 laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with novel coronavirus, including 18 deaths.

Gerry Adams, United Nations.

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