Seven new coronavirus cases detected in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Health has announced that the number of people in the kingdom receiving treatment for the MERS virus has risen to 65, on the back of seven new cases reported in Riyadh on Saturday.

A press conference was held amid a surge in the number of infections at King Fahd National Guard Hospital in Riyadh's King Abdulaziz Medical City.

Undersecretary for Public Health Dr. Abdulaziz Bin Saeed explained measures taken to contain the spread, the Saudi Gazette reported.

He said a total of 53 people, including four medical practitioners, contracted the virus at the hospital and added that 17 of the patients had died while 32 of them are receiving treatment in hospitals, three are quarantined at home and one patient was discharged after treatment, the newspaper reported.

The disease hit the kingdom in 2012 with recorded cases rising to 1,141 since then.