Four die from Sars-type virus in Saudi Arabia

Four more people have died in Saudi Arabia from a new respiratory virus related to Sars, bringing the total number of deaths to 32 in the kingdom at the centre of the growing crisis.

Overall, nearly 40 people have died from the virus since September, mostly in Europe and the Middle East, according to local officials and the World Health Organisation.

The Saudi Health Ministry also said today that it has confirmed three more cases of the virus, including in a two-year-old child. Officials are still seeking clues on how easily it is spread between humans.

The new virus is related to Sars, which killed some 800 people in a global epidemic in 2003, and belongs to a family of viruses that most often causes the common cold.