--- description: The deadly virus, whose origins may be linked to camels, has claimed 68 lives in Saudi Arabia and caused a panic among health workers title: MERS death toll climbs as man dies of virus in Saudi Arabia image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Saudi Arabia](/tag/saudi-arabia/) ## Saudi Arabia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # MERS Death Toll Climbs as Man Killed By Virus in Saudi Arabia  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 14, 2014 3:38 PM CUT  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 14, 2014 3:38 PM CUT A foreigner has died of the [MERS](http://news.yahoo.com/foreigner-dies-mers-saudi-8-infected-073644838.html "undefined") virus in Saudi Arabia, the country’s health ministry announced Saturday. Eight others, including five health workers, have also been recently infected with MERS, the ministry said. The nationality of the 45-year-old man who died in the city of Jeddah has not been disclosed, the AFP reports. His death brings Saudi Arabia’s MERS-related fatality count to 68, making it the country most affected by the virus. The origins of the MERS, or the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, has puzzled scientists, though a February study suggested [camels may play a role in spreading](http://time.com/9929/camels-are-crucial-to-spread-of-deadly-virus-in-middle-east/ "undefined") it. MERS is related to but more deadly than the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus. The World Health Organization said Friday that it knows of 212 confirmed cases of MERS. 88, or approximately 42%, of those patients have died. \[[AFP](http://news.yahoo.com/foreigner-dies-mers-saudi-8-infected-073644838.html "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/61674/mers-saudi-arabia/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/61674/mers-saudi-arabia/"},"headline":"MERS Death Toll Climbs as Man Killed By Virus in Saudi Arabia","datePublished":"2014-04-14T15:38:36.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:17:37.592Z","description":"The deadly virus, whose origins may be linked to camels, has claimed 68 lives in Saudi Arabia and caused a panic among health workers","url":"https://time.com/61674/mers-saudi-arabia/","keywords":["Saudi Arabia","Disease","Middle East","Infectious Disease","MERS","Virus","World Health Organization","SARS"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nolan Feeney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/saudi-arabia/","name":"Saudi Arabia"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/61674/mers-saudi-arabia/","name":"MERS Death Toll Climbs as Man Killed By Virus in Saudi Arabia"}}]}] ```