A Saudi Arabian man has died of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers), while five more people were infected with the Mers-coronavirus, including two medics, all in Jeddah, a report said.

Yesterday’s death of the 52-year-old brings to 71 the total number of people to have died from Mers, out of 205 infections of the respiratory illness in Saudi Arabia, reported the Saudi Gazette.

The Health Ministry on Tuesday reported the death of a 59-year-old, also in Jeddah, as well as four other infections in the same city, including three medics, according to the report.

Ministry officials have urged experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) to visit the Kingdom to attend a scheduled consultative meeting in Riyadh by the end of this month, the report said.

As of mid-March, at least 37 cases have been confirmed from among the samples taken from 2,517 people suspected of contracting the virus at five hospitals in Jeddah region, according to the report. There were seven cases of death reported in Jeddah due to the virus.

Six new Mers cases have been reported in Jeddah, which included three Saudis and three expatriates, Minister of Health Dr Abdullah Al-Rabeeah was quoted as saying in the report.

The health department said it is sending an epidemiology expert and an infectious disease specialist to UAE after the death of the Filipino there and reports that six other Filipinos were found to have the virus.