US issues new UAE travel advisory

The US has issued a fresh travel advisory for the UAE.

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 4 Travel health notice for United Arab Emirates due to Covid-19, indicating a very high level of Covid-19 in the country,” an advisory issued by the US Department of State – Bureau of Consular Affairs on Monday, June 28, said.

The US’ travel advisory is spread across four levels, starting from Level 1 (exercise normal precautions), Level 2 (exercise increased precautions), Level 3 (reconsider travel) and Level 4 (Do not travel).

The UAE continues to remain on the UK’s travel red list as well, after the GCC state was added to the list in January this year. Earlier this month, Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths expressed his apprehensions over the possibility of Britain removing the UAE from its travel red list in the immediate future.

Read more: Dubai Airports CEO expresses uncertainty over UAE being removed from UK’s travel red list soon

More than one-third of the infections reported across the UAE are of the Delta strain, which was first detected in India, health officials confirmed earlier this week. The Beta strain (first detected in South Africa) accounts for 39.2 per cent of all cases, while the Alpha strain (first detected in the UK) makes up for 11.3 per cent.

Read: Covid-19: Delta variant accounts for a third of all infections in the UAE

According to the data received by UAE health authorities, the transmissibility of the Delta mutation has risen by about 40 to 60 per cent, and the risk of hospital admission doubles after infection with this strain compared to the Alpha strain, especially among those with pre-existing health conditions.

The UAE has embarked on a massive vaccination campaign to safeguard citizens and residents against the pandemic. The total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered as of June 28 stands at 15,111,234 with a vaccine distribution rate of 152.79 doses per 100 people.

Dubai plans to inoculate all eligible adults before the end of the year.

Read: Dubai aims to vaccinate all eligible adults by end of year