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Arabia | ||
Saudi King visits Jeddah to allay Mers fears | ||
2014-04-25 | ||
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia was in Jeddah on Thursday in a bid to reassure a worried public as the death toll from the Mers virus hit 85.
Public concern has been fuelled by the reported resignation last week of at least four doctors at Jeddahâs King Fahd Hospital after they refused to treat Mers patients for fear of infection with the deadly coronavirus. In its latest bulletin on Wednesday, the health ministry said that it had recorded a total of 287 cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome in the kingdom so far, of whom a full 85 had died. Riyadh insisted there was no cause for public alarm.
âThe Mers situation is reassuring and it has not reached the level of an epidemic,â he told students in Jeddah according to the Saudi Gazette. Labour Minister Adel Fakieh, who has taken over as acting health minister, said on Twitter late on Tuesday that he had visited the King Fahd Hospital. He promised âtransparency and to promptly provide the media and society with the information needed.â | ||
Posted by:Steve White |