Saudi, Kuwait impose evening curfews to limit spread of Covid-19

Saudi Arabia has imposed an evening curfew to limit the spread of Covid-19 for 21 days starting from Monday, March 23, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

Under the order, announced by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the curfew will be in effect from 7pm until 6am.

The decision comes after the kingdom reported 119 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, taking its total number of cases to 511.

Read: Saudi Arabia confirms 119 new coronavirus infections including 72 cases in Makkah

An official source in the Ministry of Interior confirmed to SPA that the following sectors and activities would be exempt from the curfew:

* Vital activities

– The food sector (points of sale), such as catering, supermarkets, vegetable, poultry, and meat shops, bakeries, and food factories.
– The health sector, including pharmacies, medical clinics, hospitals, laboratories and factories of medical devices and materials.
– The media sector in its various means.
– The transportation sector, including those transporting goods, parcels, customs clearance, warehouses, logistics services, and supply chains of health and food sectors, and port operation.
– E-commerce activities, such as those working in electronic purchases applications and delivery applications for the excluded activities.
– Accommodation services, such as hotels and furnished apartments.
– The energy sector, including fuel stations and emergency services of the Saudi Electricity Company.
– The financial services and insurance sector, specifically those involved in managing accidents (Najm), urgent health insurance services (approvals), and other insurance services.
– The telecom sector, covering internet and communication network operators.
– The water sector including water company emergency services and home drinking water delivery service.

* Security, military and health cars as well as government regulatory services vehicles

* Those delivering food, medicinal needs, and other essential goods and services through using smart device applications (express delivery services) during the time of curfew

* Muezzins who need to reach the mosques to recite the call to prayer during the time of curfew

* Workers in diplomatic missions and international organisations and residents of the diplomatic quarter who need to get to their workplaces

For more information about the exempt activities can be obtained from the toll-free number 999 across the kingdom and from 911 for the Makkah region.

Kuwait

Kuwait also announced on Sunday that it will impose an evening curfew, the official Kuwait news agency KUNA reported.

The curfew will last from 5pm until 4am and will be enforced by security forces and National Guards.

Violators could be jailed up to three years or fined up to KD10,000 dinars under the Civil Defence Law, officials warned.

The Kuwaiti Cabinet also decided on Sunday to extend a suspension of the government and private sectors for two more weeks.

The Gulf state reported 12 new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the total infections to 188.