COVID-19: Oman closes its land, sea borders and suspends flights for a week

Dubai: Oman will close its land, air and sea borders, and halt flights for one week, from Tuesday at 1am, state television reported on Monday.

The decision follows measures imposed by various countries following the outbreak of a new strain of COVID-19, Oman TV said.

The decision was taken by the Supreme Committee tasked with tackling COVID-19, which decided to temporarily ban entry and exit from the country through its land, sea and air borders for one week.

The move comes amid reports of the outbreak of the faster-spreading virus strain in a number of countries.

The decision was made at an emergency meeting presided over by Hamoud Bin Faisal Al Busaidi, Minister of Interior and Chairman of the committee, in efforts to stem the spread of the mutated virus and protect the public.

Cargo aircraft, cargo ships and trucks are exempted from the ban. The committee will continue to follow up on the epidemiological status of the new coronavirus and make appropriate decisions accordingly.