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COVID-19: More Indonesians in Malaysia test positive after attending mass prayer
Foreign Ministry acting spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah confirmed that the 10 Indonesians had participated in the grand tabligh (large-scale Quran recitation) late last month, bringing the total number of Indonesian citizens who have tested positive in Malaysia to 13.
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Tourists wearing protective masks take pictures outside a mosque following the outbreak of coronavirus, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on March 16. (REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng)
T
he Foreign Affairs Ministry has announced that 10 more Indonesian citizens contracted COVID-19 after attending a mass religious gathering in Malaysia.
Ministry acting spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah confirmed that the 10 Indonesians had participated in the grand tabligh (large-scale Quran recitation) late last month, bringing the total number of Indonesian citizens who have tested positive in Malaysia to 13.
“For [the cases in] Malaysia, it is true that they were related to the tabligh gathering,” Faizasyah said on Thursday, as quoted by kompas.com.
The event was held at the Sri Petaling Jamek Mosque from Feb. 27 to March 1 and was attended by about 16,000 people from various countries, Reuters reported.
Malaysia reported 190 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, up from 12 on Friday, with the new cases said to be linked to the gathering.
On Monday, the country confirmed 125 new cases, taking its total to 553, with nearly two-thirds of the new cases linked to the Islamic gathering.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry reported on Monday that three Indonesian citizens who participated in the Islamic gathering had tested positive for COVID-19 and had been hospitalized in Malaysia since Sunday.
There were about 700 Indonesians at the mass gathering, Channel News Asia reported.
The Health Ministry’s disease control and prevention director general, Achmad Yurianto, has appealed to Indonesians currently in Malaysia who were present at the event to immediately seek medical help when they have health complaints. (syk)
