Coronavirus: UAE reports 281 new cases after 48,000 tests

Country reported no deaths for second day running

A doctor from the Palestinian ministry of health stands next to a map tracking the location of people infected with the coronavirus, in Hebron in the occupied West Bank. AFP

A worker checks the temperature of people who are going to pray at a mosque in Rabat, Morocco. With the exception of Friday prayer, mosques reopened for the first time since their closure in March following the coronavirus outbreak. AP Photo

A Palestinian youth sells sweets by the beach in Gaza City as coronavirus restriction eases. AFP

A health worker conducts a coronavirus test at a drive-through testing centre in the central Iraqi city of Najaf. AFP

A drive-through testing facility for coronavirus in the central Iraqi city of Najaf. AFP

An employee from the ministry of health during a radio broadcast that offers advice about the coronavirus precautionary measures at a radio station in Basra, Iraq. Reuters

A doctor displays a blood sample taken from a person suspected of being infected with the coronavirus in Hebron in the occupied West Bank. AFP

Dr Issam Mujahed, right, a member of the Pal-Med Europe, presents medical donations to doctors battling the coronavirus in Hebron in the occupied West Bank. AFP

A Palestinian man rides a bicycle with his child in Gaza City as coronavirus lockdown eases. AFP

People training at a gym after its reopening in Cairo, Egypt. EPA

People train at a gym after its reopening in Cairo, Egypt. EPA

A policeman wears a face mask as he reviews the passport of a traveller at Mohammed V International Airport in Casablanca, Morocco. AP Photo

The UAE reported 281 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, bringing the country's total to 56,129.

Another 994 patients were given the all-clear, pushing the overall recovery tally to 47,412.

The country reported no deaths for a second day, keeping the

toll at 335.

The new cases were identified after another 48,000 tests were carried out nationwide in the previous 24 hours.

The UAE is also playing a key role in the international effort to combat the pandemic.

The country has begun the first globally recognised clinical trial for a Covid-19 vaccine in Abu Dhabi.

The chairman of the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Hamed, volunteered as the first to test the inactive vaccine, which contains a dead version of the germ that causes Covid-19.

Dr Jamal Al Kaabi, acting undersecretary of the department, which is overseeing the trials, volunteered to be second in line to test if the vaccine is capable of producing antibodies that fight the coronavirus and provide immunity.

The tests are the first Phase 3 clinical trial for Covid-19 to be listed by World Health Organisation, officials said on Thursday.

More than 13.8 million coronavirus cases have been recorded around the world, contributing to almost 590,000 deaths.