ALGIERS, March 4 (Xinhua) -- Algeria announced on Wednesday four new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 12.
The Algerian Health Ministry said in a statement that the four new cases "were registered in the same family circle of the previous four cases in the province of Blida, some 50 km south of the capital Algiers."
"The epidemiological investigation is still underway to detect and identify all the people who were in contact with these patients," said the statement.
On Feb. 25, Algeria announced the first COVID-19 case of an Italian national who arrived in Algeria on Feb. 17.
Four more cases of COVID-19 from a family in Blida were recorded later after being infected by two family members from France. The latter two were confirmed to be infected with COVID-19 after returning back to France.
On Tuesday, Algerian Health Ministry announced three new cases who were also close contacts of the previous four cases from the family in Blida.
Health authorities have been calling on citizens to stick on prevention measures, including washing hands constantly, and taking necessary protection measures in case of travelling abroad to avoid contamination. Enditem
