Oman dismisses media reports, says no coronavirus case in the sultanate

Oman has refuted claims of coronavirus cases being recorded in the sultanate, officials have confirmed.

The country’s ministry of Health confirmed that no cases of the new virus have been registered across the country and that legal measures would be levied against those who instigate such rumours.

An official source from the #Ministry_of_Health confirmed that no cases of #Novel_Coronavirous (COVID-2019) have been recorded in the Sultanate. The Ministry urges everyone to consult the official sources and not paying attention to the rumors. pic.twitter.com/rbASjQ3mkj

— وزارة الصحة – عُمان (@OmaniMOH) February 16, 2020

The ministry advised the public to consult official outlets for accurate information and urged people not to heed to rumours.

The new coronavirus infection, which emanated from the city of Wuhan, capital of China’s Hubei province, has since claimed over 1,660 lives in the country, with the number of confirmed cases exceeding 68,500 in China.

Globally, according to the latest situation report issued issued by the World Health Organisation, there are 526 laboratory-confirmed cases across 25 countries.

In the MENA region, Egypt reported its first confirmed case of COVID-19 on Friday, marking the first reported case from the African continent.

Also read: Coronavirus update: Two more patients in the UAE have recovered