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HONG KONG, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong reported 12 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, with two identified under the Universal Community Testing Program (UCTP).

At a press briefing on Thursday afternoon, Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection (CHP) reported seven imported case and five local ones, bringing the tally of confirmed cases to 4,913.

Among the local cases, three were related to previously confirmed cases, and the infection sources of the other two, which were discovered through the UCTP, remained unknown, said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the CHP's Communicable Disease Branch.

A total of 21 cases were identified under the testing program so far, she added.

According to Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, 193 patients are still hospitalized, including 21 in critical condition.

The number of deaths related to COVID-19 is 99.

Chui Tak-yi, Under Secretary for Food and Health of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, said that as of 1 p.m. local time on Thursday, about 1.47 million residents had been tested through the UCTP, which was launched on Sept. 1, and about 1.33 million samples had been lab-tested.

Over the past three weeks, the number of confirmed cases showed a descending trend, Chui said, however, the infection source of 30 percent of the cases remained unknown. He urged the public to join the screening program to help identify asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in the community as soon as possible.