Police in Al-Jouf arrest seven people for flouting quarantine rules Ministry of Commerce carries out 49,467 inspection visits in two weeks, records 1,509 violations RIYADH: Saudi Arabia recorded nine new COVID-19 related deaths on Monday, raising the total number of fatalities to 8,490. The Ministry of Health confirmed 360 new cases reported in the Kingdom in the previous 24 hours, meaning 542,354 people have now contracted the disease. Of the total number of cases, 4,487 remain active and 1,127 in critical condition. According to the ministry, the highest number of cases were recorded in the capital Riyadh with 94, followed by Makkah with 64, the Eastern Province with 39, Jazan recorded 33, and Qassim confirmed 32 cases. The health ministry also announced that 741 patients had recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total number of recoveries in the Kingdom to 529,377. Over 34 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in the Kingdom to date through 587 centers. The ministry renewed its call on the public to register with the Sehhaty app to receive the vaccine, and adhere to the measures and abide by instructions. Police in Al-Jouf said they arrested seven people for flouting quarantine rules after they tested positive for COVID-19. Penalties for individuals who violate quarantine instructions include a fine of up to SR200,000 ($53,332) and/or up to two years imprisonment, and penalties are doubled for repeat offenders. If the violation was committed by an expat, they face deportation from the Kingdom and are permanently banned from reentry. The Ministry of Commerce said it carried out 49,467 inspection visits to monitor commercial establishments and facilities were adhering to coronavirus precautionary measures in all regions of the Kingdom in the past two weeks and recorded 1,509 immediate violations. The penalties include a fine of a fine of SR10,000, which is doubled for repeat offenders with the closure of the violating facility. The Eastern Province Municipality issued fines to 105 commercial establishments for violating preventive measures, during 1,413 monitoring rounds carried out on Sunday. The coronavirus pandemic has affected over 212 million people globally and the death toll has reached around 4.44 million.