GCC countries impose fresh restrictions due to Covid-19

Agencies | Dubai

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

An upsurge in daily Covid infections and concerns over at least three new coronavirus mutations has got nations around the globe scrambling to tighten restrictions, as it waits for vaccine roll-outs to provide long-awaited relief.

While Dubai introduced a series of updated Covid guidelines last week (see full list of measures here), several GCC countries also moved to impose further restrictions in a bid to contain the spread of variants said to be "highly transmissible" than their original counterpart.

Here's a complete list of all the new measures put in place — related to travel, education, dining, and entertainment.

Saudi Arabia

On Friday, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced that it was pushing back the end of a travel ban for its citizens and the reopening of its ports by more than a month.

Citing an interior ministry official, Saudi state news agency SPA noted that the country would now look to lift travel suspension and open all ports on May 17.

The restrictions were originally slated to be lifted on March 31.

Oman

On Wednesday, Oman announced a series of revised measures in its battle against the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to state media, all group events are now prohibited. The ban on gatherings includes international conferences, sports events and exhibitions.

The return of students to universities has also been postponed.

Additionally, all citizens and residents have been advised against foreign travel.

Earlier this week, the Gulf country also announced it was extending the closure of its land borders for another week until February 1. At the time, state news agency ONA confirmed the move was because of concerns about a new coronavirus variant, although it did not specify which one.

Bahrain

Bahrain on Wednesday announced the suspension of dine-in services in restaurants and cafes.

The Gulf kingdom also said it was shifting public and private schools to remote learning for three weeks.

Health ministries said the decisions were made in order to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Kuwait

Following a Cabinet meeting, the government of Kuwait announced that it would delay the resumption of commercial flights to Kuwait International Airport until further notice.

It further assigned the civil aviation authority to lower the number of commercial flights via the airport indefinitely.