MANILA- Twenty-three Filipinos in Dubai have succumbed to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Philippine Consul General Paul Reymond Cortes said Friday.

Many other Filipinos also called the Philippine consulate to inform authorities that they tested positive for the virus, Cortes said without providing a figure.

Those who test positive are coordinated with the Dubai police so they could be fetched, isolated, and treated for free, the diplomat said.

Many "no work, no pay" Filipinos working in Dubai have also lost their income due to the pandemic, he added but noted that the city is slowly reopening.

"Dubai is starting na bigyan ng opportunity yung mga tao to go back to work," he said.

(Dubai is starting to give people the opportunity to return to work.)

At the end of April, Dubai cut its emirate-wide 24-hour lockdown to a curfew of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

• Dubai lifts lockdown on two densely populated commercial districts

As of Thursday, the number of Filipinos abroad who have contracted COVID-19 is at 1,922, the Department of Foreign Affairs said. The figure includes 222 deaths and 557 recoveries.

• DFA: Number of COVID-19 cases among Filipinos abroad now at 1,922