2 suspected corona cases in Sudan: Minister

KHARTOUM, Sudan

Sudan’s health minister Akram Ali Altoum said Wednesday two suspected cases of coronavirus has entered his country through Egypt and Ethiopia.

Authorities are taking precautionary measures to protect the country from the disease, he told reporters after a meeting of the Sudanese Council of Ministers.

He said one of the cases is currently in Gazeera state and the other in the capital Khartoum.

“We received two suspected cases came from China through Cairo and Addis Ababa ... we want to stress here that the two cases haven’t been confirmed yet but we take the samples and then send them abroad with the help of the World Health Organization (WHO) to test it” he said.

“We are on high precautions with the different concerning authorities including the sea, land and airports as well as the ministries of interior, migration and others. We are also in full coordination with the WHO to help us be in compliance with the international standards in this regard” he explained.

Thousands of Chinese work in different sectors in Sudan, especially oil workers.

The virus first appeared in China but has spread to 19 countries with more than 6,000 cases and 132 deaths.

Symptoms include runny nose, fever, headache, cough and a sore throat.