Qatar confirms first virus case in woman evacuated from Iran

Qatar repatriates a number of its citizens from Iran - which is battling the worst outbreak outside China - and confines them to a 14-day period of quarantine.

DOHA - Qatar has confirmed its first case of coronavirus, state media reported Saturday, after a 36-year-old Qatari woman who was evacuated to Doha from Iran tested positive.

Qatar on Thursday repatriated a number of its citizens from Iran - which is battling the worst outbreak outside China - and confined them to a 14-day period of quarantine, the government said.

The health ministry said the infected patient had been admitted to hospital.

"This had been expected because of the virus's spread across the region and other countries, alongside the exponential increase in the number of cases," the health ministry said according to the Qatar News Agency.

"This is an international problem and all nations should work together to overcome the coronavirus crisis," Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told Qatar's ruler Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on Saturday by telephone, according to Iranian state TV.

Iran on Saturday reported nine new deaths from the novel coronavirus and 205 fresh cases in the past 24 hours, bringing its overall toll to 43 dead and 593 infected. As several countries in the Middle East reported cases of the coronavirus stemming from Iran, the country is at the epicenter of the outbreak in the region.

Iran is preparing for the possibility of “tens of thousands” of people getting tested for the new coronavirus as the number of confirmed cases spiked again Saturday, an official said, underscoring the fear both at home and abroad over the outbreak in the Islamic Republic.

Saturday's new toll of 593 confirmed cases represents a jump of 205 cases — a 52% increase from the 388 reported the day before.

Health Minister Saeed Namaki warned on Friday of "a very difficult week" ahead in Iran, which only announced its first infections and deaths from the coronavirus on Feb. 19 and where the death rate among confirmed cases has been around 10%, compared to around 3% elsewhere.

Tehran has ordered the shutting of schools until Tuesday and the government has extended the closure of universities and a ban on concerts and sports events for a week.

Several high-ranking officials, including a vice minister, deputy health minister and five lawmakers, have tested positive for the coronavirus as outbreak forced Iran's clerical rulers to close the parliament and impose internal travel bans. One lawmaker, elected in Iran's Feb. 21 polls, had died of the coronavirus, Iranian media reported on Saturday.

Gulf countries have announced a raft of measures to cut links with Iran to prevent the coronavirus spreading, after infections emerged among people returning from pilgrimages to the Islamic Republic.

Saudi Arabia is now the only Gulf Arab state not to have reported any cases of the coronavirus, which has infected about 80,000 people and killed more than 2,800, mostly in China.

Saudi Arabia on Friday barred citizens from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes Qatar, from entering two of Islam's holiest cities amid fears over coronavirus.

The Gulf tally stands at 45 cases of coronavirus in Kuwait, 38 in Bahrain, six in Oman and two more in the United Arab Emirates for a total of 21.

On Saturday the UAE also announced it was suspending nursery school classes, and limiting activities at other schools.

Authorities said that two planes will also be sent to Iran to collect Emiratis and other Gulf citizens trapped there after air routes were closed.

Cyclists taking part in the UAE Tour are awaiting the results of coronavirus tests from their hotel lockdown, after the event was abandoned Thursday when two staff from an Italian team tested positive.

The race organisers said in a tweet Saturday that 167 of those quarantined had received negative results on coronavirus tests, but it did not say whether they were cyclists or staff members, nor how many others were awaiting results.