Saudi Arabia’s King Salman issued on Monday (March 9) a directive ordering the donation of one crore US dollar million to support the World Health Organization’s (WHO) efforts to fight coronavirus.
Saudi authorities also on Monday said nine new coronavirus cases had been identified, adding that it was suspending travel by air and sea between the Kingdom and 14 countries to prevent the spread of the disease.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the World Health Organization (WHO) are working together to combat novel coronavirus (COVID-19),” a joint statement read.
“In support of this effort, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has provided One crore US dollar to the World Health Organization (WHO) for the implementation of urgent measures to minimize the spread of the disease and to support countries with vulnerable health infrastructures.”
Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of WHO said the organization “greatly appreciates this generous humanitarian gesture from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which will contribute significantly to efforts to safeguard global health.”
The Ministry of Health said the new cases were four Saudi nationals, two Bahrainis, an American and an Egyptian, SPA reported on Monday.
It may be mentioned here that to check this deadly corona all educational institutions have been closed from March 9 in the country. Earlier the Umrah and tourists were banned from February 27. A number of Corona infected patients have been detected in Saudi Arabia.