Author: News Desk

Lockdowns imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 have saved millions of lives and easing them now carries high risks, according to two international studies published on Monday. “The risk of a second wave happening if all interventions and all precautions are abandoned is very real,” Samir Bhatt, who co-led one of the studies by researchers at Imperial College London, told reporters in a briefing. Most European nations, worried about the economic impact of their lockdowns, have started to ease restrictions as the number of new COVID-19 cases falls. The Imperial study analysed the impact of lockdowns and social distancing…

Europe wants to be master of its own destiny in producing essential drugs and finding COVID-19 treatments, but it’s got a problem. It relies on the United States for a critical ingredient: blood plasma. As global mistrust deepens, European Union officials are casting around for ways to reduce the bloc’s dependence on American plasma, the liquid component of blood used in a host of drugs and now widely applied in COVID-19 experimental therapies. The coronavirus crisis should push authorities to overhaul Europe’s blood donation system, according to some industry players. The United States’ steadier plasma supplies are partly due to…

Saudi Arabia could drastically limit numbers at the annual Hajj pilgrimage to prevent a further outbreak of coronavirus after cases in the country topped 100,000, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday. Some 2.5 million pilgrims visit the holiest sites of Islam in Mecca and Medina for the week-long Hajj, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it. Official data show Hajj and the lesser, year-round umrah pilgrimage earns the kingdom about $12 billion a year. Saudi Arabia asked Muslims in March to put Hajj plans on hold and suspended umrah until further notice. Two sources…

A team of researchers from the Central Public Health Laboratories of the Ministry of Health (MOH) and from Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) has reached initial results of analyzing the full-genome sequencing of coronavirus (COVID-19). The analysis has been included within the global data of the virus strains of each country in the world to understand how the virus is spread and the difference of its mutation. At which, 49 viral strains have been analyzed for the first diagnosed cases in the Sultanate. The analysis of this full-genome sequencing contributes to study the epidemiological situation and how the disease spreads in…

Saudi Arabia has reported 3,369 new cases and 34 deaths from coronavirus, taking the total cases to 105,283. The death toll raised to 712 after reporting the new deaths. Meanwhile, 1,707 patients fully recovered from the virus, bringing the total recoveries to 74,524. In line with recent trends, the majority of the new cases were in the capital Riyadh (746), followed by Jeddah (577) and Mecca (376). Saudi Arabia had surpassed 100,000 cases yesterday with 3,045 cases. https://twitter.com/media_ksa/status/1269971185921646599?s=20 Also Read: Gulf Air charter flights from Saudi Arabia Bahrain reports highest daily cases of 654 Oman registers 604 new cases, 6…

Bahrain has reported 654 new cases of coronavirus, the highest daily cases ever, among 314 expatriate workers, 299 contacts of active cases, and 41 are travel-related. Meanwhile, 858 additional recoveries from COVID-19 were reported, the highest recoveries ever reported since the outbreak started. The death toll stands at 26, as no new deaths were reported in the kingdom. The newly registered cases bring the total cases to 15,417 of which 10,326 have recovered making over 66 percent of the confirmed cases to recover from the virus. Currently, there are 5,065 active cases. Also, the are 69 COVID-19 cases receiving treatment, of which 12 are…

Kuwait has reported a drop of 662 new coronavirus cases, the majority of the cases are from Kuwaitis which is 340, taking the total confirmed cases in the country 32,510, according to the Ministry of Health. 5 patients died of the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths to 269. 1,037 new recoveries have been reported in the country, raising the total recoveries to 21,242. Kuwait has done 2,999 NP swab tests in the past 24 hours, as the country ramps up its efforts to test more people and detect cases early, according to the…

Oman has registered 6 deaths and 604 daily cases of coronavirus, most of the new cases are from citizens by 344, taking the total cases to 17,486. The death toll reached at 81 after reporting the new cases. Meanwhile, 342 new recoveries were announced, bringing the total to 3,793. Currently, 75 patients are in intensive care, and a total of 283 are being treated in health care facilities. 2,697 tests were conducted across the sultanate. Also Read: Oman to permit expatriates to change employers India’s worst-hit state now has more cases than the whole of China New Zealand becomes coronavirus-free; life…

The west Indian state of Maharashtra now has a total of 85,975 coronavirus cases, including 3,060 deaths, the country’s health ministry announced Monday. The updated tally means Maharashtra now has more cases than all of China, which has 83,040 cases as of today, according to China’s National Health Commission. Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra and home to about 18.3 million people, is the worst hit city nationwide. The city has reported 48,549 cases of coronavirus, including 1,636 deaths. India’s nationwide total stands at 256,611 cases, according to the country’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare — of which, approximately a…

More than 2,500 rare manuscripts and books from the Islamic world covering a period of more than a thousand years are to be made freely available online, reported the Guardian. The National Library of Israel (NLI) in Jerusalem is digitising its world-class collection of items in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish, dating from the ninth to the 20th centuries, including spectacularly beautiful Qur’ans and literary works decorated with gold leaf and lapis lazuli. The NLI’s treasures include an exquisite Iranian copy of Gift to the Noble (Tuhfat al-Ahrar), created barely three years after the completion of a 1484 collection of verse on religious…