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That variant circulating in the UK is the same as the one Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said Friday that scientists identified here, cited as 501.V2.
Image: Facebook.
PARIS, France – Countries around the world have started banning UK flights and travelers as London said on Sunday that the spread of a new, more infectious coronavirus was now “out of control.”
That variant is the same as South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Friday that scientists had identified in the country, cited as 501.V2.
The minister said that the evidence gathered strongly suggests that the current second wave being experienced in South Africa is being driven by the variant.
These are the countries that have announced travel bans so far:
FRANCE
France said on Sunday it will stop all travel from Britain for 48 hours starting at midnight, including travel “related to the transport of goods by road, air, sea or rail.”
The ban on everything but the carriage of unaccompanied goods comes as companies struggle to move goods across the English Channel with days left for Britain to leave the EU trading bloc.
Prime Minister Jean Castex’s office said the 48-hour period would offer time to coordinate a joint EU response that would ultimately allow travel from the UK to resume “with mandatory tests on departure.”
GERMANY
Germany will stop all air links with the UK from midnight Sunday, with the ban initially scheduled to last until December 31, Health Minister Jens Spahn told ARD public television.
Cargo flights will be exempt.
A government source told AFP that Berlin is already “working on measures” to extend the suspension until January, when the end of Britain’s post-Brexit transition period means it will no longer be covered by EU rules that allow for the flight ban.
ITALY
Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza said he had signed a decree “that blocks flights from Great Britain and prohibits the entry into Italy of people who have stayed there for the last 14 days.”
Anyone in Italy who has recently traveled from Britain should be tested, the statement added.
The new strain has been found in a person in Italy who recently returned from the UK.
IRELAND
Dublin said in a statement that all flights arriving from Britain after midnight Sunday will be banned for at least 48 hours.
NETHERLANDS
All passenger flights from the UK to the Netherlands have been banned until January 1, the Dutch government said.
A case of the new strain has been found in the country, the Ministry of Health added.
THE REST OF EUROPE
In other parts of Europe, Belgium banned flights from the UK for 24 hours, Finland banned flights for two weeks and Switzerland stopped them until further notice.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have stopped flights from the UK.
Bulgaria said flights to and from Britain would be suspended from midnight Sunday until January 31.
Romania has banned all flights to and from the UK for two weeks, starting Monday afternoon.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said the country “will temporarily suspend air passenger traffic from the UK for 48 hours.”
CANADA
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would ban all UK flights for 72 hours.
In a tweet, he added that those who had already arrived from Britain on Sunday would be subject to secondary examinations and other “advanced measures”.
TURKEY
Turkey’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter that flights from Britain, Denmark, where nine cases of the new strain, the Netherlands and South Africa, have been detected.
Iran
Iran’s Health Ministry ordered the suspension of flights from Britain for two weeks, state news agency IRNA reported.
ISRAEL
Israel said it was banning entry to foreign nationals traveling from Britain, Denmark and South Africa.
A joint statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office and the health ministry also announced strict rules for Israelis returning home from those nations, saying they would be confined in quarantine centers.
SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi Arabia said on Sunday it would stop all flights and suspend entry through its land and sea ports for at least a week, with the option to extend it for another week.
Passengers who came to the kingdom from Europe, or any country where the new strain was detected, will have to self-isolate for two weeks and undergo tests.
KUWAIT
Kuwait added Britain to a list of “high risk” nations and banned the flights.
THE SAVIOR
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele said on Twitter that anyone who has been to Britain or South Africa in the past 30 days will not be able to enter the country.
ARGENTINA
Argentina has banned flights from the UK, the government said in a statement on Sunday.
He said the last flight from Britain would arrive in the country on Monday.
CHILE
Chile announced that it would suspend flights from the United Kingdom from Tuesday.
A government statement said passengers without a residence permit or who have been to Britain in the past two weeks will be barred from entering the country.
MOROCCO
Morocco has banned all flights to the UK as of Sunday.
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