Qatar reports its first coronavirus case

Qatar’s health ministry reported on Saturday the first case of coronavirus infection in the country.

The patient is a 36 year-old Qatari who returned recently from Iran, the ministry said in a statement, adding that he is a stable condition.

With Qatar reporting its first infection, Saudi Arabia becomes the only Gulf country no to have not signaled any coronavirus case.

The country most affected by the outbreak in the Gulf region is Iran, with 43 deaths and nearly 600 hundred confirmed infections, according to authorities.

The majority of infections in other Gulf countries were diagnosed in people who had visited Iran or who came into contact with people who had been there.

The only deaths reported so far in the region are in Iran.

The United Arab Emirates advised banks to reschedule loans and reduce fees and commissions on Saturday as part of measures to mitigate the economic effects of the coronavirus outbreak.

More than 85,000 people around the world have been confirmed to have been infected with coronavirus according to the latest figures, based on World Health Organisation and national counts:

• Mainland China: 2,835 deaths among 79,251 cases, mostly in the central province of Hubei
• Hong Kong: 94 cases, 2 deaths
• Macao: 10 cases
• South Korea: 3,150 cases, 17 deaths
• Japan: 941 cases, including 705 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, 11 deaths
• Italy: 888 cases, 18 deaths
• Iran: 593 cases, 43 deaths
• Singapore: 98 cases
• United States: 62
• France: 57 cases, 2 deaths
• Germany: 57 cases
• Spain: 46
• Kuwait: 45
• Thailand: 42
• Taiwan: 39 cases, 1 death
• Bahrain: 38 cases
• Malaysia: 24
• Australia: 23
• United Kingdom: 20 cases, 1 death
• United Arab Emirates: 19 cases
• Vietnam: 16
• Canada: 14
• Sweden: 12
• Switzerland: 10
• Iraq: 8
• Norway: 6
• Oman: 6
• Austria: 5
• Russia: 5
• Croatia: 5
• Israel: 5
• Philippines: 3 cases, 1 death
• Finland: 3 cases
• Greece: 3
• India: 3
• Lebanon: 3
• Romania: 3
• Norway: 2
• Pakistan: 2
• Denmark: 2
• Netherlands: 2
• Georgia: 2
• Mexico: 2
• Egypt: 1
• Algeria: 1
• Afghanistan: 1
• North Macedonia: 1
• Estonia: 1
• Lithuania: 1
• Belgium: 1
• Belarus: 1
• Nepal: 1
• Sri Lanka: 1
• Cambodia: 1
• Brazil: 1
• New Zealand: 1
• Nigeria: 1
• Azerbaijan: 1
• Monaco: 1

Via Reuters/AP