The Health Ministry reported five new cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) on Saturday. Four of them were detected on Friday evening, it said.

In the new case on Saturday, a 41-year-old Saudi national in the eastern city of Dammam was confirmed as having MERS-CoV.

“Four new cases were reported in Al-Jouf, a region in the north of the country bordering Jordan,” said the statement posted on the website of the MoH. They are all expatriate workers including a 26-year old woman, said the statement. Arab News could not reach the MoH spokesman for further comments on the new cases or any other case reported in other cities of the country.

But, Sultan Ayoub Meo, a senior professor and consultant at the local King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH), said he is hopeful about the “consistent decrease” in the number of MERS cases in the foreseeable future. “To eradicate this deadly disease is not an easy task, but both the government efforts and current weather conditions favor to minimize the spread of this virus,” he added.