Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Wednesday ordered that the government and all health authorities exercise extreme caution in light of the country's first case of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
ALGIERS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th February, 2020) Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Wednesday ordered that the government and all health authorities exercise extreme caution in light of the country's first case of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
On Tuesday, Algerian Health Minister Abderrahmane Benbouzid announced that COVID-19 was detected in an Italian citizen who arrived in the country on February 17. The minister confirmed that everything was being done to ensure the patient, who is now in quarantine, got medical treatment.
"The government and all health authorities in the country have been instructed to exercise the utmost care and caution after a foreign man was detected to be infected with the coronavirus disease and place under full quarantine," Tebboune wrote on Twitter.
The president also called for an awareness campaign via social media in order to safeguard public health.
COVID-19 has already spread to a number of the Gulf countries, including Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain, as well as to Iraq and Iran.
As of Wednesday, the outbreak has infected over 80,900 people worldwide, roughly 800 more than a day ago, with the death toll now over 2,700. Within the last day, however, over 2,000 patients have recovered from the disease, bringing the recovery total to 30,118.
