Kuwait and Bahrain report their first cases of the coronavirus
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Kuwait and Bahrain reported their first cases of the virus, while Turkey, Pakistan and Armenia closed their borders with Iran, as Tehran reported more coronavirus infections and deaths. Neighbouring Afghanistan also introduced travel restrictions.
Qatar will ask passengers arriving from Iran and South Korea to remain in home isolation or a quarantine facility for 14 days over fears of new coronavirus outbreak, Qatar Airways said in a statement on Monday.
Qatar has not yet reported a confirmed case of the virus.
Iraq has shut its Safwan border crossing with Kuwait to travellers and trade at Kuwait’s request.
Lebanon’s health ministry has asked parents who recently visited countries severely affected by the coronavirus outbreak not to send their children to school for 15 days, Lebanon’s health minister has said, according to local media.
“In accordance with the education minister, we ask parents who were in Iran or in countries that have been found to have coronavirus infections not to send their children to school or university for 15 days as a precautionary measure,” Health Minister Hamad Hasan told local TV channel LBCI. Lebanon confirmed its first case on Friday.
At least 152 cases and three deaths were also reported in Italy, prompting emergency measures in Europe.
French junior transport minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari has said that he saw no need to close down transport borders between France and Italy, despite the spread of coronavirus.
“Closing down the borders would make no sense, as the circulation of the virus is not just limited to administrative borders,” Djebbari told BFM Business, referencing the recent outbreak in Italy, where cases have risen to more than 150.
