Manama: Kuwait decided to ban entry for non-citizens for two weeks as of Feb. 7, in a bid to curb a jump in Covid-19 infections.
The cabinet decision, read out at a televised press conference on Wednesday night, said the ban does not apply to close relatives of Kuwaiti citizens and domestic workers.
During an extraordinary meeting, the Cabinet ordered to close all health clubs, salons, barbershops, celebration halls and tents for one month starting from Feb 7. Apart from this, it banned all types of gatherings including national holiday celebrations later this month, government spokesman Tareq Al-Mazrem said.
The meeting also decided to close commercial shops and restaurants including malls from 8 pm to 5 am from Feb 7 for a period of one month, which can be renewed if the situation does not improve. They will be allowed delivery services to continue. The decision exempts pharmacies and food stores, he added.
In a major decision, the cabinet also approved the re-introduction of institutional quarantine for a week for people returning from abroad. They will have to undergo another seven days of home quarantine, he said. The institution quarantine will be at local hotels at the expense of returnees, he said.
The new stringent measures come after a spike in new infections and after the discovery that some passengers carried forged negative PCR test certificates. He said that authorities will take legal measures against those who arrive with fake PCR certificates.
If people do not adhere to precautionary measures like wearing facemasks and observing social distancing, the government will consider “additional” measures, he warned.
The number of new coronavirus cases in the country more than doubled in January over the previous month, according to the health ministry. The country saw a 3.6 per cent surge in positive cases during tests conducted, compared to last month where the average was 5.2 per cent. As many as 14,952 new cases were reported in the past four weeks compared to just 7,234 cases in the previous four weeks. It shows a jump of over 100 percent. Kuwait recorded 811 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, the highest number since November 10.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday advised nationals against non-essential travel, unless indispensable because of the new strain of coronavirus spreading worldwide. The ministry said in a statement that those who need to travel for essential purposes to provide health insurance that covers all ailments, including COVID-19, throughout the duration of the overseas stay.
The civil aviation department has indefinitely limited the number of passengers per flight to just 35, after the measure was due to end on Feb 6.
A similar ban was last imposed in the country on December 21 for 10 days, after a new and more virulent strain of coronavirus was detected in the UK.
Kuwait is the second country in the six-nation GCC block to ban arrivals. Saudi Arabia banned arrivals from 20 countries, including India and the UAE. The ban came in to effect on Wednesday night.
