RIYADH: Thirty-three of the 34 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus cases in the Kingdom were reported from Riyadh and one from Najran, the weekly report released here by the Ministry of Health said on Monday.

The report, which covered a period of seven days between August 23 and 29, said 15 such patients were treated at hospitals belonging to the ministry, while the other patients were admitted to government and semi-government facilities in the Kingdom.

According to an official, the laboratories of the ministry have tested 1,655 samples for the virus.

The ministry’s rapid response team has made 12 visits to various health facilities to monitor the movement of the disease. On Monday, the ministry reported two more deaths and six new cases of the virus, which brings the total number of cases to 1,184 since June 2012. During this period, there had been 509 deaths, 611 patients recovered and 53 out of 64 patients currently taking treatment in various hospitals, while 11 are isolated in their respective homes for treatment.

Monday’s deaths included two men, aged 81 and 57 years, from Riyadh. The six new cases included a 33-year-old expatriate female nurse and a 57-year-old male expatriate. Among the other new patients were two men and two women who are currently under treatment.