1,161 new COVID-19 cases in UAE as death toll reaches 505

A medical worker carries a swab tested during coronavirus testing at a screening center in Abu Dhabi, UAE. (File/Reuters)
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Updated 05 November 2020
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1,161 new COVID-19 cases in UAE as death toll reaches 505

  • Abu Dhabi announces new entry rules from Nov. 8
  • Kuwait records 763 cases and 5 deaths, Bahrain reports 327 cases and 3 deaths

DUBAI: Health authorities in the UAE on Tuesday announced a further 1,161 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and two additional deaths from conditions related to the disease.
The Ministry of Health and Prevention said the total number of cases in the country now stands at 137,310, and the death toll has reached 505. A further 1,493 patients have recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 134,983.
During daily inspections, teams from Dubai’s economic authority issued fines to three shops in a shopping center for not adhering to COVID-19 precautionary measures.
Authorities in Abu Dhabi have announced new entry requirements that will apply to people entering the emirate from Nov. 8 to enhance early-detection efforts. 

The Abu Dhabi Crisis, Emergency and Disasters Committee said residents and visitors who arrive and remain in the emirate “for four or more consecutive days must take a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test on the fourth day (after) entry. If they stay for eight or more consecutive days, they must take another PCR test on the eighth day.”
Residents and visitors will continue to be allowed to enter the emirate if they can provide evidence of a negative PCR test or laser-based DPI (diffractive phase interferometry) test within 48 hours of receiving the result.
Abu Dhabi has also announced the formation of a Scientific and Technical Advisory Group for Emergencies as part of its efforts to enhance and assist the health-care sector’s response to emergencies. 

It has a number of Emirati, regional and international COVID-19 specialists from the public and private sectors, including experts from academic, technical and scientific fields from the US, Britain, South Korea and Saudi Arabia.
Sheikh Abdullah Al-Hamed, the head of Abu Dhabi’s Department of Health said: “We are working in the department to harness all available resources and capabilities to move forward in strengthening the health sector, enriching its outputs and empowering its workers, which is part of our vision aimed at making Abu Dhabi a healthy society.”
Meanwhile, the director-general of Abu Dhabi Police, Maj. Gen. Maktoum Ali Al-Sharifi, and sector directors were given doses of a COVID-19 vaccine as part of a national program and to promote the use of the vaccine.
Kuwait recorded 763 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total there to 128,843. The death toll stands at 794 after five more patients died.

Oman’s health ministry reported 319 new cases and 11 deaths, bringing the totals to 116,847 and 1,275 respectively.

In Bahrain, three deaths were reported, bringing the death toll to 327, while 261 new infected cases were confirmed.

 


Israel police to deploy around Al-Aqsa for Ramadan, Palestinians report curbs

Updated 17 February 2026
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Israel police to deploy around Al-Aqsa for Ramadan, Palestinians report curbs

  • The Al-Aqsa compound is a central symbol of Palestinian identity and also a frequent flashpoint

JERUSALEM: Israeli police said Monday that they would deploy in force around the Al-Aqsa Mosque during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins this week, as Palestinian officials accused Israel of imposing restrictions at the compound.
Over the course of the month of fasting and prayer, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians traditionally attend prayers at Al-Aqsa — Islam’s third-holiest site, located in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed.
Arad Braverman, a senior Jerusalem police officer, said forces would be deployed “day and night” across the compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, and in the surrounding area.
He said thousands of police would also be on duty for Friday prayers, which draw the largest crowds of Muslim worshippers.
Braverman said police had recommended issuing 10,000 permits for Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, who require special permission to enter Jerusalem.
He did not say whether age limits would apply, adding that the final number of people would be decided by the government.
The Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate said in a separate statement it had been informed that permits would again be restricted to men over 55 and women over 50, mirroring last year’s criteria.
It said Israeli authorities had blocked the Islamic Waqf — the Jordanian?run body administering the site — from carrying out routine preparations, including installing shade structures and setting up temporary medical clinics.
A Waqf source confirmed the restrictions and said 33 of its employees had been barred from entering the compound in the week before Ramadan.
The Al-Aqsa compound is a central symbol of Palestinian identity and also a frequent flashpoint.
Under long?standing arrangements, Jews may visit the compound — which they revere as the site of their second temple, destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD — but they are not permitted to pray there.
Israel says it is committed to maintaining this status quo, though Palestinians fear it is being eroded.
Braverman reiterated Monday that no changes were planned.
In recent years, a growing number of Jewish ultranationalists have challenged the prayer ban, including far?right politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, who prayed at the site while serving as national security minister in 2024 and 2025.