Saudi Arabia Bans Travel To and From Nine Countries Amid Coronavirus Fears – Reports
01:23 GMT 09.03.2020
CAIRO (Sputnik) – The Saudi government has decided to suspend travel between the Kingdom and nine countries in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), media reported.
The countries subject to the travel ban include the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Italy and South Korea, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said on Monday citing Interior Ministry sources.
The travel ban applies both to Saudi nationals and foreigners. Travel to and from the aforementioned countries will be temporarily prohibited, only cargo flights and evacuation flights will be allowed.
On Sunday, the Saudi authorities announced that there were 15 confirmed coronavirus cases in the country. Most of the patients have reportedly traveled to Iran, which has become one of the most recent hotbeds of the COVID-19 infection.
On a global scale, the number of coronavirus cases has exceeded 109,000, with more than 90 countries reporting infections. In addition, over 3,800 people have already died from the disease, while nearly 62,000 have fully recovered.
COVID-19 was first detected in China's Wuhan in late December and has since spread across the world. In late January, the World Health Organisation declared a global health emergency in light of the epidemic.
© Sputnik
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