PUTRAJAYA, Aug 13 — Malaysia saw 15 new Covid-19 cases over the past 24 hours, nine of which were from a new cluster detected in Tawar, Kedah.

Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the new cases raises the  total tally to 9,129, of which 183 are currently active.

"There were four new recoveries bringing the total to 8,821 or a 96.6 per cent recovery rate. No new deaths were reported, with the total number of fatalities staying at 125,” he said.

Dr Noor Hisham said four out of today’s 15 new cases were imported. Three cases involved Malaysians returning from Indonesia. The last import case involved a Malaysian returning from Yemen.

On the Covid-19 cluster in Tawar, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the cluster involves nine positive cases.

"The index case is a Malaysian businessman who attended a memorial service for a recently deceased family member,” he said during a press conference at the Ministry's headquarters today.

Dr Noor Hisham said the businessman sought immediate medical attention after he experienced chest pain and symptoms of fever on August 9 and was tested for Covid-19 the same day.

"He was tested for Covid-19 on August 9 and reported positive two days later. Health authorities then carried out active case detection and screening of close contacts.

"As of today, 86 close contacts of the man have been identified. Of the total, nine ― all family members ― tested positive for Covid-19.

"Twenty-one tested negative and another 56 are still waiting for test results,” he said, adding that the Health Ministry is investigating the cause of the spread and whether it is related to the Sivangangga cluster.