UAE records 2,638 Covid-19 cases and four deaths

Daily testing rates topped 500,000 once again

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  Churchgoers in Abu Dhabi register before receiving a Covid-19 vaccine at the weekend.

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  Bishop Paul Hinder, the pope’s most senior representative in the Arabian Peninsula, meets church volunteers and medics carrying out the vaccination drive at St Joseph's Church in Abu Dhabi.

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  Churchgoers and residents wait to receive a Covid-19 vaccine dose in Abu Dhabi.

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  Bishop Paul Hinder oversees the vaccination drive at St Joseph's Church.

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  Medical staff administer vaccines to people at St Joseph's Church.

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  Churches in Abu Dhabi have opened their doors to be part of a local vaccination drive.

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  Medical staff administer vaccines to people at St Joseph's Church.

The UAE announced 2,638 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday as four more patients died after contracting the virus.

A further 1,099 people recovered from coronavirus during the latest 24-hour reporting period.

Authorities have now recorded 835,839 cases, 2,232 deaths and 772,723 recoveries since the outbreak began.

The new infections were detected following an additional 528,426 PCR tests.

Testing rates have exceeded 500,000 in six of the past nine days, having never previously hit that mark.

More than 123 million tests have been carried out to date under a comprehensive screening campaign.

Robust testing and a nationwide vaccination drive have been central to the country's fight against the pandemic.

Close to 23.5 million vaccine doses have been administered, with about 93 per cent of the public now fully vaccinated.

The UAE topped the latest Covid-19 global resilience rankings, followed by Cyprus, Bahrain and Israel.

The Emirates ranked first in the Pandemic Resilience Index 2022, which was compiled by the Consumer Choice Centre, an advocacy group based in the US.

Mass testing, vaccination approval and distribution of booster shots were among the key factors that helped the UAE to secure the top spot.