Oman closes land border for one week, says closure can be extended

Oman on Sunday, January 17, announced that it would be closing its land border for at least a week, starting at 6pm on Monday, January 18.

The decision was reached following a meeting of its Supreme Committee tasked with dealing with Covid-19 pandemic.

The committee reviewed a report prepared by a team of specialists on the measures required to protect against the virus in general, but specifically against newer variants of the virus that are now showing up in several countries around the world.

Although the land borders have been closed for a week, the Supreme Committee reiterated that this period can be extended.

It said that it had also observed a trend wherein the Covid-19 precautionary measures laid out by the authorities were not being adhered to entirely by citizens and residents. Social events were being held in tents and large gatherings were making it easier for the virus to spread. It warned of fines that will be imposed on those that flout the rules.

As of January 18, Oman has reported a total 131,790 infections, including 526 cases that were recorded over the preceding 24 hours.

The country has begun administering the second dose of the Pfizer-BionNTech vaccine.

The Times of Oman reported that 24,773 individuals in the sultanate were vaccinated during the first phase of the campaign targeting vulnerable segments including those suffering from chronic diseases, the elderly and frontline workers.