Saudi Arabia reported a gradual escalation in COVID-19 cases, registering 700 infections on Friday for the first time in nearly seven months, amid continuous calls for community members to adhere to preventive and social distancing measures.
The Saudi Ministry of Health announced that 728 new cases of the virus were recorded during the past 24 hours. It also reported 404 recoveries. The Ministry said that the active cases amounted to 5,768, with 735 patients in critical condition.
Eight deaths were registered on Friday, bringing death toll in the Kingdom to 6,684.
The Ministry of Health stressed that social gatherings and lack of commitment to precautionary measures caused the increase in the number of infections in the country. It urged the citizens to adhere to preventive measures such as wearing masks, disinfecting hands, and avoiding handshakes, to limit the spread of the virus.
This comes as the number of vaccine doses administered so far has reached 4.6 million through more than 500 vaccination centers distributed across the Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs announced the temporary closure of 11 mosques in five regions, after virus cases were confirmed among worshipers. A total of 441 mosques were closed within 54 days, 416 of which were re-opened after the completion of sterilization.
