10 virus cases, including 9 local infections, recorded Saturday

AMMAN — The Kingdom on Saturday recorded 10 COVID-19 cases, including nine local infections, increasing the caseload to 1,339 since the outbreak of the pandemic in Jordan, according to Health Minister Saad Jaber.

The local infections included four cases in Ramtha, four in Amman in addition to a woman who contracted the infection from her husband at the quarantine site in the Dead Sea area, Jaber said during a press conference at the National Centre for Security and Crisis Management. 

The 10th case is a Jordanian truck driver who returned to the Kingdom through the Omari border crossing, the minister said.

No recoveries were registered on Saturday, he added.

Jaber noted that 6,600 random COVID-19 tests were conducted nationwide on Saturday, increasing the total number of tests administered to 686,351.

Calling the number of local infections as  "worrying", the health minister noted that a total of 75 domestic cases have been registered since August 7.

Also speaking at the joint breifing, head of the coronavirus crisis cell at the centre Brig. Gen. Mazen Faraiah announced the isolation of Ramtha District in Irbid as of 6am on Monday, calling on its residents to abide by safety regulations so as to lift the containment measures as soon as possible.

Faraiah said that restrictions on public movement will be enforced from 8pm to 6am in Ramtha, noting that businesses can operate as usual except during the curfew hours.  

The army official said that the move is a precautionary measure aimed at protecting the district’s residents, curbing the spreading of the virus to other districts in Irbid and maintaining the “good” epidemiological situation in the Kingdom.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Tareq Hammouri said that employees of food, medicine and energy supply chains who have valid movement permits will be allowed entry into Ramtha, in a minimal manner.

Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh said that Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Omar Razzaz had chaired a crisis cell meeting earlier in the day to evaluate the epidemiological status in the Kingdom, and to review field plans at the national and governorate levels to deal with any possible scenarios.

The Kingdom recorded nine virus cases on Friday, including three local infections, according to the government.

The local cases included two patients from Ramtha and one from Irbid, who contracted the virus from COVID-19 patients.