Covid-19 update: Oman to reopen its borders on December 29

Oman will reopen its land, air and sea borders on Tuesday, December 29 after one week of closure, the country’s Supreme Committee announced on Sunday.

The sultanate had closed all its borders on December 22 to prevent the spread of the new strain of the coronavirus.

Read: Covid-19 new strain: Oman to close all its borders for a week

The committee, in charge of handling developments related to the Covid-19 crisis, said that borders will be opened at 12am on Tuesday, December 29.

It also said that Covid-19 PCR compulsory tests will be mandatory for all travellers coming to Oman within 72 hours of entry. Another test will also be conducted at Oman’s airports, it said.

The committee also stated that quarantine procedures for those visiting Oman for less than seven days has been removed.

اللجنة العليا تقرر إنهاء العمل بقرار منع الدخولِ إلى #السلطنةِ والخروجِ منها عبر مختلف المنافذ البريّة والجويّة والبحرية في الساعة الثانية عشرة من صباحِ الثلاثاء 29 ديسمبر 2020 م. pic.twitter.com/GTHubM7ud3

— وكالة الأنباء العمانية (@OmanNewsAgency) December 27, 2020

Last week, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait also also suspended all international flights and closed their borders for one week due to the new Covid-19 strain.

The new strain of the coronavirus was identified in the UK and the country’s government warned that the fast-spreading strain was “out of control”.

Several countries temporarily suspended flights to the UK last week, with the Philippines extending the ban on UK flights until mid-January.

On Sunday, China also asked airlines to suspend UK flights from December 28 to January 10.