Saudi Arabia Urges Citizens to Postpone Lebanon Travel over Coronavirus

Gulf

February 29th, 9:44am

Asharq Al-Awsat

People wearing face masks walk outside Rafik Hariri hospital, where Lebanon's first coronavirus case is being quarantined, in Beirut, Lebanon February 21, 2020. (Reuters)

Saudi Arabia called on its citizens and residents to postpone travel to Lebanon over concerns of the spread of coronavirus, the Saudi embassy in Lebanon said on Twitter on Saturday. On Friday, the Kingdom temporarily suspended entry of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) citizens to Makkah and Madinah. A foreign ministry statement said it will exclude from that decision the citizens of the GCC who had been in Saudi Arabia for more than 14 continuous days and did not show any symptoms of the new coronavirus (COVID-19). Lebanon’s Education Ministry on Friday announced the closure of all schools until March 8 as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus. The announcement came as the country’s fourth case of the virus, affecting a Syrian national quarantined at a Beirut hospital, was confirmed in a statement from the hospital. Lebanon’s first three coronavirus cases were linked to passengers arriving on flights from Iran, which has seen the highest number of deaths from the virus outside China. Lebanon has since halted flights for non-residents from countries with coronavirus outbreaks, including China, Iran, Italy and South Korea, the transport ministry said on Friday.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2155586/saudi-arabia-urges-citizens-postpone-lebanon-travel-over-coronavirus