Oman bans travellers from 7 southern African countries

Cairo: Oman has suspended entry to travellers from South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho and Eswatini starting from November 28 due to the spread of a new variant of COVID-19 discovered in South Africa, the country’s state news agency said in a tweet on Saturday.

On Friday, Saudi Arabia and the UAE has suspended flights to and from the 7 countries.

Meanwhile, Qatar Airways has stopped accepting passengers from these countries.

The discovery of the new variant caused worldwide scramble on Friday as nations raced to halt air travel and scientists held emergency meetings to weigh the exact risks, which were largely unknown.