MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) counted 34 more Filipinos abroad who tested positive for the coronavirus, bringing the total number of cases to 5,218 as of Monday, June 1.

There were 3 new fatalities recorded in the Middle East, raising the death toll involving overseas Filipinos to 342.

The confirmed cases include 2,709 Filipinos still undergoing treatment and 2,167 who already recovered.  

The increase in new cases follows a recent spike of over 2,300 cases which the DFA said covered late cases reported in the Middle East. The department earlier said it had difficulty obtaining timely updates due to privacy restrictions in several countries.

Cases were spread across 47 countries with the following breakdown per region: 

Asia Pacific
13 countries included

• Total: 489
• Undergoing treatment: 136
• Recovered or discharged from hospital: 351
• Deaths: 2 

Europe
16 countries included

• Total: 821
• Undergoing treatment: 472
• Recovered or discharged from hospital: 259
• Deaths: 90

Middle East and Africa
12 countries included 

• Total: 3,252
• Undergoing treatment: 1,835
• Recovered or discharged from hospital: 1,317
• Deaths: 100

Americas
6 countries included 

• Total: 656
• Undergoing treatment: 266
• Recovered or discharged from hospital: 240
• Deaths: 150

Of the 5,218 cases, 957 have been confirmed by the Philippine Department of Health, which tracks cases based on International Health Regulations from the World Health Organization.  

In the Philippines, a total of 18,683 coronavirus cases have been recorded, including 960 deaths and 3,979 recoveries.

The global death toll due to COVID-19 has surpassed 372,000, while over 6.1 million people have been infected in over 190 countries and territories. – Rappler.com