KABUL (SW) – The Ministry of Public Health has reported an increase in the number of people infected with the coronavirus in the country.
Waheedullah Mayar, spokesman for the ministry, told a news conference on Monday that 65 new coronavirus cases have been reported in seven provinces over the past 24 hours. According to him, 13 people were infected in Kabul, 28 in Kandahar, 7 in Helmand, 7 in Herat, 6 in Nimroz, 3 in Takhar and another one in Kunduz.
With the registration of these 65 new cases, the total number of people with COVID-19 in the country has reached 672, of which 38 patients have recovered and 21 have died. Mayar said those patients who have recovered have been discharged from hospital. The spokesman for the Ministry of Public Health once again called on the people to follow the health advice and stay at home.
A police officer with coronavirus has also died. Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the policeman had been on duty in Kabul's seventh district and had died after contracting the virus.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Rafiq Shirzai, a spokesman for the Herat Health Department, said a woman with coronavirus has died in the province. Shirzai said the 45-year-old woman, who died six days ago, has been diagnosed with the disease today.
So far, the number of people infected with COVID-19 in Herat, the epicenter of the coronavirus in Afghanistan, has risen to 280, with six people, including two women, dead, according to the provincial health directorate.
Although the coronavirus diagnosis laboratory in Herat is capable of testing 140 individuals per day, the provincial health authorities today announced the results of only 28 patients.
Dozens of people suspected of having coronavirus in the province are waiting to be tested.
Health officials in Herat cite a lack of coronavirus testing tools as one of the main reasons for testing a small number of people suspected of having the virus.
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