Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia reports 3,121 new cases, highest rise yet

Saudi Arabia reported 3,121 new cases of the novel coronavirus, its highest daily increase so far, bringing the total number of cases in the Kingdom to 98,869, the Ministry of Health announced on Saturday.

The capital Riyadh recorded the biggest number of new cases, where a total of 900 infections were confirmed in the last 24 hours.

Jeddah reported the second highest number of new cases, with 572 cases found.

The other cases were detected in cities and provinces across the Kingdom.

#الصحة⁩ تعلن عن تسجيل (3121) حالة إصابة جديدة بفيروس ⁧#كورونا⁩ الجديد (كوفيد19)، وتسجيل (34) حالات وفيات رحمهم الله، وتسجيل (1175) حالة تعافي ليصبح إجمالي عدد الحالات المتعافية (71,791) حالة ولله الحمد. pic.twitter.com/CEzNhaet1p

— و ز ا ر ة ا لـ صـ حـ ة السعودية (@SaudiMOH) June 6, 2020

The health ministry said that 34 people died of COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia in the past 24 hours. This raises the virus-related death toll in the country 676.

Meanwhile, the number of recoveries in the Kingdom rose to 71,791 after 1,175 people recovered from the virus.

The health ministry had warned on Friday that it was monitoring the number of cases reported in Riyadh to determine whether reimposing strict restrictions, including a curfew, would be necessary.

The Ministry of Interior on Friday announced that a curfew from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m. would be imposed on the city of Jeddah due to a large increase in the number of cases reported in the area.

All workplace attendance, in both the public and private sector, has been halted, and prayers in mosques around the city have been suspended.

Health Minister Dr. Tawfiq al-Rabiah urged the public to adhere to precautionary measures, adding that maintaining social distancing practices and following the rules would be the only way to prevent infection for now.