Saudi authorities suggest wearing masks in the midst of the global increase in cases of Covid-19
Saudi Arabia’s Public Security Authority has recommended Umrah devotees wearing masks on their faces when visiting holy places.
The suggestion comes amid global reports of a brand new strain that is a deadly form of coronavirus circulating all over the world.
The last week the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that it is monitoring a new strain of coronavirus. New cases amounted to 1.5m between July 10 and August 6, which is an 80 percent increase over the prior 28 days.
Saudi issues Covid-19 Face Mask advice
The EG.5 is also known as Eris is a sublineage within the Omicron variant. It has been identified in 51 countries including China, the United States, China, South Korea and Japan, as per an initial risk assessment.
Although the overall risk is minimal, “based on its genetic characteristics and immune escape characteristics and estimates of growth rate, EG.5 may spread globally and cause a rise in the event of an incidence.”
Saudi security officials have advised Umrah travelers to put on masks on their faces to safeguard their health as well as others in Saudi Arabia.
In a statement posted on the official account on social media the statement read: “Wearing a mask in the Two Holy Mosques, in Makkah and Madinah and their surroundings will protect you and your family from the spread of disease.”
Guest of Al-Rahman..
— الأمن العام (@security_gov) August 6, 2023
Wearing a mask in the Two Holy Mosques, in Makkah and Madinah and their surrounding areas, protects you and others from disease infection. pic.twitter.com/ctXiZg5Nja
He stated: “The risk remains of an even more dangerous variant arising which could trigger an increase in the number of instances and even deaths”.
Tedros noted that it has been three months since the time he declared Covid-19’s end as an emergency in the global health system, however, at the time, Tedros warned that it remained an issue.
In the years since, however, the amount of hospitalisations, reported cases and deaths across the globe has decreased.
In addition, the quantity of countries reporting information to WHO is also declining. In the last month just 25 percent reported deaths from Covid-19 and only 11 percent reported hospitalisations and admissions to intensive care units.
Tedros stated that the chance of dying from severe illness is much lower than it was one year ago, thanks to the increasing immunity of the population whether due to vaccination or infection, and also due to early diagnosis through improved medical care.
“Despite these advancements, WHO continues to assess the risk posed by Covid-19 for the world’s public health as very high. Covid-19 is still circulating throughout the world, and it kills and it continues to evolve,” he added.
New #COVID19 variant of interest: EG.5.
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) August 9, 2023
Formerly a variant under monitoring, WHO has now designated this a variant of interest.
There has been a steady increase in this variant’s prevalence. As of 7 August 2023, over 7000 sequences have been shared from 51 countries.
More… pic.twitter.com/DlDdAPYMos
To this, WHO has published recommendations to countries, which include the need to update their national Covid-19 programs to ensure the long-term sustainable treatment of the disease.
They are also advised to keep a close eye on the surveillance of their coworkers to identify important changes to the virus and also trends in severity and immunity.
Tedros has urged every country to provide Covid-19 information, focusing regarding death and severe diseases genetic sequences, as well as the effectiveness of the vaccine.
Governments should continue to provide vaccines against the disease, particularly for those in the highest-risk groups, and guarantee equal access to vaccinations, tests and treatments.
More than seven million people have been killed by Covid-19 and there have been over 769 millions confirmed cases around the world.
