By Joanne Serrieh

DUBAI -- Kuwait has recorded three new coronavirus fatalities over the past 24 hours and 242 new cases, raising the total to 4,619, the health ministry announced on Saturday.

Health Minister Dr. Basel Al-Sabah earlier announced an additional 101 people have recovered in the kingdom. The death toll reached 33 while the number of recoveries is now 1,703.

As the country maintains its low death toll, 69 people remain in the intensive care unit (ICU) with 34 in critical conditions.

The first three cases in Kuwait were announced on Feb. 24, all of which had arrived from Iran which was witnessing an explosion of cases at the time. Many of the subsequent cases confirmed in Kuwait during late February were also people arriving from Iran.

Recently, as the country began repatriating its citizens, the number of travel-related cases grew, as well as number of local transmission where people did not adhere to social distancing became infected.

Authorities continue to urge people to adhere to social distancing rules and to comply with precautionary measures such as wearing a face mask and avoiding crowds and gatherings. -- Al Arabiya English