Kuwait bans air travellers from Bangladesh, 30 other countries over coronavirus risks

The restrictions include passengers who were in the 31 countries within 14 days before the date of travel from other countries, the Kuwaiti Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in a statement on Saturday.

Besides Bangladesh, the countries include India, Pakistan, Egypt, the Philippines, Lebanon and Sri Lanka, all of which have large numbers of expatriates in Kuwait. The list also includes China, Iran, Brazil, Mexico, Italy and Iraq.

The ban was announced the same day that Kuwait began a partial resumption of commercial flights.

The authorities have said Kuwait International Airport would run at about 30 percent capacity from Saturday, gradually increasing in coming months.

The health ministry also advised against all non-essential travel at the present time, government spokesman Tariq al-Muzaram said on Twitter.

Kuwait, which has recorded nearly 67,000 coronavirus cases and more than 400 deaths, began a five-phase plan at the start of June to gradually lift COVID-19 restrictions. A partial curfew remains in place.

[With details from Reuters]