Three Gulf states close borders to prevent a new strain of virus



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São Paulo – At least three countries in the Arab Gulf announced the decision to close their borders due to the new strain of coronavirus, which has infected more than 1,000 people in the United Kingdom, Saudi daily Arab news posted on their website. In the photo above, the Kuwait airport.

Kuwait said it will suspend all commercial flights and close its land borders from 11 p.m. local time Monday through January 1. The country added the UK to its list of high-risk countries, which means that all flights from there are banned.

Oman will close its land, air and sea borders tomorrow at 1 a.m. local time for a week to prevent the new strain of the virus from entering the country. Oman said cargoes via planes, ships and trucks will be excluded from the border closure and will continue to monitor the epidemiological situation of the new strain.

Saudi Arabia suspended all international passenger flights for a week on Sunday (20). Entry through land and sea ports has also been suspended and this deadline can be extended for another week. Some flights will be allowed in exceptional circumstances, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

Anyone who has returned to Saudi Arabia from European countries or high-risk countries after December 8 must be quarantined for two weeks from the date of arrival. They must also undergo a COVID-19 test during their self-isolation period and repeat the test every five days. Anyone who has transited through a European or high-risk country in the last three months should also be tested. The movement of goods and commodities will continue as usual.

The new strain of COVID-19 is 70% more infectious and has been identified in the UK, several other European countries, Australia and South Africa. The new threat emerged just as the introduction of several developed vaccines raised hopes around the world that the COVID-19 pandemic could be defeated.

Translated by Guilherme Miranda

Yazzer Al-Zayyat / AFP



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